Bodies: Switched
by Agetada
Summary: One unexpected fall from a cliff... How troublesome can finding a cure to this get? NejiShika, ShikaNeji
1. Day 1 The switch

**Disclaimer:** Neji ain't mine, Shikamaru ain't mine, plot is mine.

**Summary:** One unexpected fall from a cliff... How troublesome can finding a cure to this get?

**Warnings:** Shônen-ai (a.k.a. boyxboy), slight pervertness, slight OOCness.

**A/N:** A story I've been writing on for god knows how long. Been planning of putting this up for ages, but didn't have the time to actually write the final version ready 'til now.

Hope there ain't much typos, 'cause mey beta Akatsuki Wallpaper is gone for awhile and she couldn't beta this. And I know this must be a little confusing, but it's the style I use while writing this, so please bear with me.

* * *

**Day 1 - The switch  
**

-- --

A squirrel running up a tree trunk two hundred feet down from here.

A bird flapping its wings on a branch twenty-two feet left from here.

A man staring just a foot and half behind him.

Hyuuga Neji, the genius of his clan spins around furiously. The veins on his face look freaky, but the man walking carelessly toward him does not stop.

"Nara", hisses the pearl-eyed man and the veins disappear.

"Hyuuga", returns the other man lazily, hands stuffed in his pockets.

"Did you come here just to interrupt my training or do you have some message?" Neji's voice is harsh as he turns around on the edge of the cliff.

Shikamaru, the man with a head like a pineapple mutters something under his breath. He walks forward until he reaches the other man.

Neji turns his head away from him. Shikamaru gazes at the clouds. "How troublesome."

Sudden rumble around them catches their attention. Neji knits his eyebrows and shoots a sharp glare to Shikamaru.

"What was it?"

"Sounded like rocks falling", mumbles Shikamaru and together they turn to look behind them. As they see the cliff they just stood on far above them and notice the ground under them collapsing, they can just wonder how come they did not notice it before.

With surprised cries they fall.

-- --

"Aagh…"

"…troublesome…"

Shikamaru lifts his hand to his forehead. Something feels strange. His skin feels softer than before.

Then Shikamaru opens his eyes. Even before opening them he feels something strange again. His eyes feel wider than before.

But as he looks around him he _knows_ something strange has happened. For it is no common sight to see yourself lying in front of you. Without a mirror, to be exact.

Fortunately for Shikamaru he is a genius and too lazy to panic. So he just moves to shake his real body, already gotten somewhat used to this one that belongs to Neji. "Oi, Hyuuga. Neji, wake up."

The other boy, looking like Shikamaru, lets out a short, low moan and opens his eyes slowly. And stares. "What the fuck?"

Shikamaru sighs and brushes the long, black locks out of his sight. "This is annoying. Why won't Neji tie his hair properly… This way it just keeps getting to my face."

The other man – Neji, still looking too much like Shikamaru – stares again. He feels like touching the body infront of him, to confirm it is real, not just an illusion, but he doesn't have the strenght to even rase his fingers. "What. The. Fuck?"

"Don't panic. It'd be too troublesome to calm you down."

"I. Am. Not. Panicking." His teeth's screeching can be heard from far away. "I just want to know what happened while I was unconscious, Nara."

"It seems that we somehow", Shikamaru waves the long bangs out of his face, " – damn his hair – switched bodies."

Silence. For a moment. Then a long yawn. From Shikamaru's body.

"This is - " Neji yawns, blinking his eyes to not fall asleep, " - your fault."

The pearl eyes widen a bit. "Strange", Shikamaru mutters to himself.

"Did you say something?" Neji, acting like he had been visiting Shikamaru's body for his whole life, asks lazily.

"Maybe we should go to Hokage. The way he is acting could mean this may have more influence on us than I thought…"

"You do realize you're talking out loud all the time, do you?" Neji stands up slowly, finally getting a grip of his own, real mind. He holds out his hand for the other man sitting on the ground.

After a moment of staring Shikamaru takes the offered hand. "It feels pretty strange to touch myself like this."

Neji only raises his eyebrows. _'I hope he is not gonna do anything stupid as me... I couldn't bear the embarrassment...'_

-- --

Yet again the villagers of Konoha have something to gossip about as Hyuuga Neji pulls the half sleeping Nara Shikamaru roughly behind him towards the Hokage tower. And they don't even bother to hide it.

Shikamaru frowns to the people staring at them and moves his head to glare at Neji so he would walk faster, but instead he just gets a curtain of long hair blocking his view. "How come when he were in control he never had these hair problems", he mutters angrily while trying to get the hair out of his face.

"...The hair tie is gone."

Shikamaru stops, Neji bumping into him. "And you tell me now? After all the problems I've been through." He sounds quite serious over the hair issue.

"That's what you get when you can't handle my hair." Neji smirks in a way that makes him look like himself though he still is in Shikamaru's body. "But if you really insist, you can have this..." he reaches for the hair tie that holds Shikamaru's hair in the spiky ponytail. Then he feels very familiar hand grabbing his own.

"Don't", Shikamaru growls, glaring at Neji warningly.

Neji shrugs. "Not, then..." He yawns yet again.

So they continue their walk, Shikamaru muttering to himself once in a while. Everybody stares at them, not even bothering to lower their voices while gossiping about the two of them. Hyuuga Neji and Nara Shikamaru? Walking together? Holding hands?

Shikamaru blushes as he realizes he really is holding Neji's hand. Quickly he lets go. "Come", he grunts and fastens his steps.

* * *

**A/N:** So, here it is. The first part of Bodies: Switched. Hope you enjoyed it. I gotta say I had fun while planning the plot many many months ago.

Note: When Neji or Shikamaru's POV, they will be called by their real names. When someone's POV who doesn't know they've switched; they'll be called by the name of the body they are currently in. Get it, anyone..?

Dunno why this is rated T... Oh well, I just have to write something perverted so this is really T material. Yeah.

Well, then... Comments would be nice. And criticism is allowed, yes.

P.S. Save mey Lost! Otherwise I'll die within 11 days. (Damn I have no shame when trying to get people Lost...) www. lost. eu / 18603


	2. Day 1 His house

**Disclaimer:** All people that appear in this chapter are the property of Kishimoto Masashi. (Expect for those random, nameless guys but they shan't be mentioned.)

**A/N:** Verrrrry important chapter to understand **why**. Eheh… Oh well, you'll understand after you've read this.

Thankies for reviews, they keep me going!

Please tell me if there're any typos. I didn't check all the words from dictionary, so I'm not so sure about them...

* * *

**Day 1 - His house **

--- ---

"Excuse me, Hokage-sama. Nara Shikamaru and Hyuuga Neji wish to speak with you."

Tsunade raises her head from the table to glare at the man for a while before banging against the table again. "Let them in."

"Evening, Ho - " yawn, " – kage-sama."

Tsunade knits her brows as she hears the greeting. Who did the man say wanted to meet her? Nara Shikamaru and Hyuuga Neji, wasn't it? Then how come that didn't sound like neither of them, for Shikamaru never bothers to greet, and the Hyuuga would never show how tired he is.

Tsunade focuses her gaze to the two men in front of her. Everything seems to be normal, Hyuuga glaring around and Nara going to fall asleep. But their chakra ways seem to be all messed up.

"How did you manage to fuck yourselves up this badly?" she growls, standing up from her chair. "Good you came to me, otherwise it would've taken many hours to cure you…"

"So you can cure us right away?" Nara asks hopefully, waking up from his dream-like state.

"I hope so. I can't stand your hair anymore, it has something against me", Hyuuga growls.

Slap!

The two men's eyes are wide as they hold their equally red left cheeks.

"There. Now your charkas are working yet again", Tsunade smirks, withdrawing the chakra from her hand.

Hyuuga glances at her, then sighs. "This is just too troublesome…"

Tsunade frowns at this. _'Did Hyuuga just..?'_ An idea, pretty impossible though, comes into her mind. "Don't tell me you have switched bodies?"

Nara nods.

"Oh, great." Tsunade buries her head into her hands. "So you", she points at the supposed to be Hyuuga, "are Nara in reality?"

A nod again.

Tsunade sighs. She wants to get rid of those two as quickly as possible so she could return to her dear sake. "Look, you two…" She quickly goes through all the possible suggestions in her head, finally deciding the best one. "I think you shouldn't tell anyone about this. Let's keep this between us three."

The Hyuuga - in Nara's body – glares at the other man. "Does that mean we have to act as each other until the cure is found?"

"Yes." Tsunade must admit she hadn't even thought of that. _'This is getting interesting…'_ She smirks and lands her piercing gaze onto the two men who glance at each other. "Don't worry about missions. I'll fix it so your teams won't have any missions but maybe C-ranked, so you won't leave Konoha. And once I've found the cure, I'll let you know. Now, piss off."

Hyuuga and Nara bow to the Hokage and leave, starting a verbal fight as soon as they get out of the office. Tsunade sighs.

'_Damn. __I forgot that there has been a case like this once before… and they changed back with a crash. Oh well, those two will try that out sooner or later…'_

--- ---

"No way am I going to act as you." Neji crosses his arms and stops.

Shikamaru sighs and stops walking too. He turns to look at the sulking Neji, who is yet again fingering the hair tie that has probably grown to Shikamaru's hair.

"Don't touch it", Shikamaru hisses, taking a warning step towards Neji.

Neji raises his eyebrows. "Why not? Are you afraid of – of seeing me without it."

'_What the - ?'_ For a very short moment Shikamaru can't understand what Neji means with the 'seeing me without it' until he realizes that they are on a busy street where everybody can hear them. And it looks like many are listening to them right now. Shikamaru grins. _'Let's play along, then…'_

"How could I be afraid of seeing you without it when it brings back _so good memories_."

It looks like the whole street froze after hearing Shikamaru's – well, to them it was Neji's – suggestive voice.

Neji stares at Shikamaru. His eye twitches. "You...!"

"Shikamaru! Yohooooh!"

Neji can nothing to it. His eye twitches again. "What are you doing?"

Shikamaru peeks from behind Neji, looking quite frightened. "She's so troublesome…"

"Who?"

"Hi!" Suddenly someone glomps Neji. "How you doing? We haven't seen you in _so_ long time!"

Neji looks at the blonde girl hugging her. "Yeah, right…" are the only words that manage to escape from his lips.

"Hey, Shikamaru. Wanna come to barbeque?" Another friend of Shikamaru's appears and Neji doesn't know this one's name either. Yes, he realizes that he is an Akimichi, but that doesn't help much because Neji doesn't think that Shikamaru calls his team mates by their family names.

"Hyuuga", the Akimichi suddenly says, causing all of the three to turn to look at the supposed-to-be-Hyuuga.

"Hi, Neji", the blonde girl greets. Neji starts wondering just how the hell does she know his name.

Shikamaru nods to the girl as a greeting, then grabs Neji's arm. "I'm sorry, but Nara can't come with you now. We have some business to do."

"See ya", Neji says and lifts his hand in a friendly wave. The Akimichi and the nameless girl look at each other, stunned.

"Well, see you later then", the girl smiles and then Neji and Shikamaru are on their way again.

"Who the hell were they?" Neji hisses as soon as they are out of the busy street.

"Ino and Chôji, my team mates."

"Was Chôji the girl?"

"He's boy."

"Looks more like Ino to me…"

"You should remember his name. He was rescuing Sasuke with you."

"As if I could remember everyone's name after so many years."

Shikamaru glances at Neji, his eyebrows slightly knotted. "We should go somewhere private so we could discuss about… everything." Once again he brushes the long bangs out of his view. Cursing inside his mind the Hyuuga's hair to hell he is just too glad of the fact that his chakra is not messed up anymore, or he would still be thinking out loud. "Is your place quiet enough?"

"Not quite. People tend to just come in without any warning." Something clicks in Neji's mind. "Wait, wait, wait."

"What?" Shikamaru crosses his – or rather Neji's body's – arms.

"You mean I have to go to your house? No way." Neji holds up his arms and backs few steps.

"You're so troublesome…" Shikamaru sighs and rubs his temples. "Look, Hyuuga, if we are going to keep this situation as a secret, that means we have to act as each other until the cure is found. And to act as each other without anyone getting suspicious we have to learn where to live and how to act."

"Fine", Neji grunts and walks to Shikamaru. "Show me your place."

"Gladly."

* * *

**A/N:** Yet again about Shikamaru's hair tie. But, I mean, he never takes it off, so his hair must be stuck like that. Or at least the hair tie's melted into his hair. That happens, trust me. 

And the part where Neji ask if Chôji was the girl has a hidden meaning to it. 'Cause chô means butterfly, Neji thought it was a girly name, so he assumed the girl to be Chôji. And the sentence 'looks more like Ino to me', can be understood like I meant when you know that **ino** can be translated as **stomach's**. Yeah.

Thank you for reading, and hope you enjoyed.

If you like this fic, please save me: www. lost. eu/ 18603


	3. Day 1 Mother

**Disclaimer:** All characters in this chapter are Kishimoto Masashi's (surprise, surprise).

**A/N:** Aaand Shikamaru's mom appears. I have no idea what she's like or what's her name, so I'll just make her nagging and troublesome woman ('cause all I can remember about her is that Shikamaru says she's troublesome) who'll be referred to as Mrs. Nara /Shika's mom/Yoshiko. **If you know in what chapter there is more info 'bout her, please tell me **so I can go and read the chap (I don't want to just go and try to find myself 'cause it's just too damn troublesome for many reasons I won't state out).

Sorry for the shortness. It's only 'cause wanted to give something for you to read. Enjoy. **  
**

* * *

**Day 1 - Mother **

--- ---

"That's my house." Shikamaru points at a quite normal-looking house a way before them.

Neji looks at it. Indeed, it looks quite normal, not at all outstanding. Except for the deer that just appeared to the garden surrounding the whole house. "A deer?"

Shikamaru glances at Neji. "Don't pretend you have never wondered about my name."

"Well, maybe once. It is quite… strange, after all."

"At least it's better than 'screw'…" Shikamaru mutters.

Neji decides to ignore that comment. Instead he focuses his attention to the woman who had com eout of the house. "Who is she?"

Shikamaru looks towards his home yet again, this time backing few steps, surprised. "That's my mom."

Now curious, Neji looks more carefully at the woman patting the deer. "Your mother…" he mutters to himself. "How should I act around her?"

"Bored, and annoyed. Try to get away to my room as soon as possible. And if she tries to get you to do something, remark that you're… _I_'m your guest."

Neji nods and follows Shikamaru down the small hill towards the house.

"Hands in your pockets", Shikamaru hisses and slows his pace a bit so they now walk abreast. Neji obeys and – trying to remember how Shikamaru used to act in his own body – relaxes a bit.

"Keep it improving and you'll fool even me." Shikamaru smirks lazily.

"Too troublesome."

Shocked, Shikamaru turns to look at Neji, not really knowing if he heard right or not. He is about to ask but has no time as he hears the very familiar yell of his mother, now aimed to someone else.

"Shikamaru! Where have you been the whole morning?"

Shikamaru's mom, also known as Mrs. Nara rushes up to them, immediately snatching her supposed-to-be son from his ponytail. "You should've come home for dinner!"

Neji stares at the woman for a short moment in horror until he remembers the advices Shikamaru gave to him. He tries to get an annoyed face on. "Sorry, mother, but I had to talk with Hyuuga. About our mission."

"Mission? Then it's ok." Mrs. Nara let's go of Neji-looking-like-Shikamaru and turns to the one she assumes is Hyuuga Neji. "Hello", she chirps, stepping next to him and puling him towards their house. "You must be Hyuuga Neji. I've heard so much about you from my son. He's always talking about you."

At this Shikamaru blushes, hard. Neji glances at him, apparently quite embarrassed himself.

"Oh, don't be shy. It's true, every word. He's always telling me how easy you are to work with, that you're not at all troublesome and that you're the best – "

"Cut it out, mother." Finally Neji has found the right words to say to the woman talking just a bit too much. Though it is true that he would have wanted to listen to the woman for more information – maybe a bit incorrect, but that is quite okay for to Neji _every _compliment is treasured – he had to cut her out for the sake of their secret.

Mrs. Nara glances over her shoulder at Neji walking behind her. "Mother? Since when have you started calling me mother?"

Shikamaru slaps his forehead. He should've known Neji uses the respective form of 'mother'.

Neji bits his lip. "Mom, then." He shrugs, trying to act as if it was nothing.

Mrs. Nara glances suspiciously at him before smiling. "I see Neji has more influence over you than I thought."

Neji and Shikamaru stare at each other until they get shoved into the house through the front door.

Scanning around him Neji notes that the house is not-so-traditional Japanese house. It has two floors - apparently all the bedrooms are situated on the second – and a very, very large living room – or so Neji thinks – which opens to the garden that leads to Konoha's forest. On the right Neji sees the Naras' kitchen where Mrs. Nara is heading right now.

"Anything to drink, boys?" she asks.

"My favourite drink is lemon tea", Shikamaru mutters to Neji, going to the stairs.

"Lemon tea and green tea." Not sure if he should be polite or not, he adds a 'please' to his sentence after thinking a moment.

"I'll bring them to your room."

"…Okay."

Neji then follows Shikamaru to his room, missing the look that Mrs. Nara gives to him.

--- ---

"Lemon tea and green tea. Please."

Yoshiko nods to herself and wanders off to go prepare the drinks. "I'll bring them to your room", she says, giving a last glance to her son. From where she stands she can see the Hyuuga walking confidently up the stairs, towards Shikamaru's room with no trace of uncertainty, followed closely by Shikamaru. Yoshiko frowns. _'Looks like he's been here more than once…'  
_

* * *

**A/N:** Phew. Added Mrs. Nara's POV to the end, wanting to show her thoughts. Yeah. 

So, they're at Shikamaru's. I hope you get the description of the Naras' house. I had an image in my mind that they're house would have larger downstairs than upstairs and that there would be a garden surrounding the house where their deer could hang around. (Yes, they raise deer. Am not sure if it's a fact or not, but think it is.)

Wait patiently for the next chapter. 'Cause they'll start teaching each other and other _very nice stuff_. Yeah.

Care to save me? www. lost. eu/ 18603


	4. Day 1 Lovers?

**Disclaimer:** I own no one in this chap (except maybe Shoki).

**A/N:** So. They practise their roles. And you see a bit slashy moments.

**Note:** Changed this from General/Romance to Romance/General 'cause this is turning out to be ShikaNeji earlier than I thought.

* * *

**Day 1 - Lovers?**

--- ---

The door opens quietly, revealing a messy, dark room. Shikamaru steps aside, letting his guest enter first.

Neji looks warily around. The room _is_ messy, not much floor showing under all the clothes and other stuff. "Do you _ever_ clean your room?"

"No sense, since I don't spend time in here", Shikamaru shrugs. He sits down to the futon that Neji first mistook as a bundle of clothing, nodding for Neji to do the same. A knock on the door interrupts them.

"Your drinks", comes Mrs. Nara's muffled voice through the door.

Neji looks at Shikamaru, asking for instructions.

Shikamaru sighs. "Thank you, ma'am."

"I'll leave them here to not to disturb you." Her footsteps fade away.

Neji opens the door carefully, taking in the small tray with two teacups on it. "So you drink lemon tea and call her mom." Neji fetches the cup of green tea from the tray, sitting next to Shikamaru.

"Yeah."

A silence surrounds them.

Shikamaru gulps half of his tea and stands up. He starts going through all the stuff on the table that is situated on the opposite side as the futon. Then he stops, holding a simple hair tie on his hand.

Neji puts slowly his cup back to the tray as he sees just what kind of a ponytail Shikamaru is making. Shaking his head he stands up and slaps Shikamaru's hands out of his hair. "Let me do it", he says and pulls the hair tie off of the almost finished ponytail that was far too high to his liking.

"Not really fond of my style, I see", Shikamaru mumbles but lets Neji do as he wishes.

"You should know that I don't like too tight ponytails", Neji answers, combing through his body's hair with his hand. Once again he feels the weird feeling, like he is watching this all from somewhere far away. Like he is dead and only going through his memories.

"We should start teaching each other", Shikamaru reminds and admires the loose but still tight ponytail that Neji made. He turns to Neji. "You can start. Tell me… some basic facts about you." He sits to the futon, waiting for Neji to start.

"My name is Hyuuga Neji, I'm the only son of Hyuuga Hizashi and Noriko. My mother died soon after giving birth to me. My father was sacrificed for the life of my uncle, Hyuuga Hiashi-sama." Neji takes a deep breath and sits down to the futon. Shikamaru looks at him with the all too white eyes that he now has. "Right after my father's death the head branch took me to them, but I loathed them because they were the ones who had caused father's death." Neji taps the hitai-ate on his body's head. "I loathed them until the chûnin exams." He falls silent, but Shikamaru doesn't interrupt. "Now I understand why he did it." Neji turns to Shikamaru, startling as he sees the Byakuugan. "Please. Tell me about your family."

"Well… I'm Nara Shikamaru, my mom is Yoshiko and my dad is Shikaku. I have no other siblings." He stops, staring at the roof. "I could have had a baby sister… but mom had miscarriage. I can't remember it 'cause I was so young back then, and mom never talks about it." He shrugs, looking funny for he is laying on his futon. "Guess that's all."

"Then, tell about… yourself."

"I smoke." Shikamaru reaches for the green vest on Neji, fishing a pack of cigarettes out of its pocket. He takes one and is about to put it between his lips but Neji is quicker. He takes all the cigarettes from Shikamaru.

"No way you are going to ruin my body with these", he hisses angrily.

Shikamaru glances at him, annoyed. "Fine. But you'll feel horrible if you won't let my body have its smoke."

"I like it better feeling horrible than smoking."

The two of them stare at each other challengingly until Shikamaru continues on speaking. "I like peaches."

"Me too."

"I like green and black."

"I like beige and white."

And so on they continue, telling each other about things that their families know, about what they should say in certain situations and in what manner they should speak and move so they would not get caught. Neji even finds himself smiling a bit to Shikamaru's attempts of trying to act like him.

"Say…"

Shikamaru stops in the middle of a drama-queen move. "Yeah?"

"What was it that your mother said? That I'm the best."

Shikamaru turns to Neji, looking emotionlessly at him. "Not true."

"Oh." Neji sits up on the futon, looking out of the window. Shikamaru thinks he knows that look on Neji's face.

"Hey, Nara. Do you think I could stay here overnight?"

Shikamaru nods towards the door, quietly saying dad to Neji's questioning eyes.

"Fine to me."

A sudden knock on the door startles them. Without waiting for a reply the door opens, revealing Shikamaru's father.

"Hello, Neji", he grins from the doorway. "I heard you're gonna stay here for the night."

"Yes…" Shikamaru acts a bit suspicious about the man's intentions.

"Oh well then, good luck with Shikamaru." He winks to Shikamaru who is Neji to him. "He sleeps quite widely."

"And what's that supposed to mean?" Neji asks a bit furiously, playing his part well.

"Shoki destroyed our only spare futon!" Mr Nara laughs through the now closed door.

"Shoki?" Neji asks, waiting for the worst.

"A deer. Quite young and fierce. Usually comes here to destroy something."

"I hope you don't assume me to learn all the deers' names."

"I do, in fact."

"Well, if I have to learn them all, I want to remove this hair tie as a reward."

"You can do that when you wash – " Shikamaru stops dead.

"Wash." Neji says the word as if it is his doom. He must admit he had thought of that for a second, but then had pushed it aside, not wanting to think of it. He turns to Shikamaru. "I guess we just have to do it… when we're dirty enough."

"Shouldn't be too hard, since we're both males."

Neji feels like blushing.

"And even before bathing there'll be situations where we'll see each other naked…"

"Boys!" Mrs. Nara's voice comes from downstairs, saving Neji for total embarrassment. "Dinner is ready."

--- ---

Yoshiko smiles as she sees the two boys coming downstairs. Shikaku puts the plates from his hands to the kitchen table with noise. "Hope you like simple food, Neji-kun. We have only rice and tofu."

"Because _you_ forgot to buy groceries", Yoshiko reminds her husband, making him laugh nervously.

"Rice and tofu is quite okay for me", Neji says, smiling softly. "I'm sure you can make _any_ food taste wonderful."

"Oh Neji, you." Yoshiko blushes. Shikamaru glances slightly at Neji who only returns a smile.

"Well then, let's start", Shikaku interrupts, drawing out a chair for his wife.

Yoshiko smiles and sits. _'Feeling jealous, are we?'_

The boys sit too, taking out plates while Shikaku gives everyone their share of the food.

"Itadakimasu, minna-san", Neji wishes.

"Thank you", Yoshiko wishes, not quite knowing how to answer to that one.

"You shouldn't confuse my parents, Neji. We don't usually wish itadakimasu", Shikamaru says, taking a bite of his tofu, licking his chopsticks slightly, his half-lidded eyes looking at Neji.

"Oh don't worry, _Shika-kun_, I'm quite sure I'll soon learn your ways." Neji takes a sip of his drink, his lips wet and glistening. "After all, it seems we have to spend… quite a time together." He cocks his head to the side a bit, smiling almost invisibly.

"I must say I'm delighted of getting to know you better this way, _Neji-chan_", Shikamaru replies, rising his head a bit, looking at Neji with a suggestive look and a smirk on his face.

Suggestive?

Shikaku stops his hand and stares at the boys. _'What the heck is going on?'_ He turns to his wife, asking the question with his eyes. _Later_, Yoshiko's eyes say, but right after that their chance arrives in the form of a deer.

"Shoki!" Shikaku cries in surprise. "How you got in?" He stands up from his chair, shoo'ing the deer out of the kitchen, his wife following.

"You left the gate open again, didn't you?"

"I swear I didn't", Shikaku defends himself. "It was - "

Yoshiko puts a finger on her husband's lips, silencing him. She gives a quick glance towards the kitchen.

"What?" Shikaku whispers, sensing the secretive mood.

Yoshiko nods towards their kitchen, her lips twitching like she is about to cry out some really big secret.

Shikaku moves his eyes there. "Shikamaru and Neji? What about them?"

"Don't you see?"

Shikaku raises his eyebrows. "No. What should I?"

"They're lovers."

"WHAT!?!"

"Shh!" Yoshiko hisses, looking again towards the kitchen. She drags Shikaku's ear to her lips and continues, this time with more quiet voice so the boys would definitely not hear anything. "Didn't you realize all their looks and their moves were only part of the battle of which one's going to be seme."

Shikaku gulps. "Sh… Shikamaru and… and Neji..?"

"It is so obvious", Yoshiko whispers excitedly. Then she sees her husbands look. "Aren't you happy for him?" she asks a bit angrily.

"O-of course I am, but… it's just a bit of a shock. To hear that my son is gay. With a Hyuuga. And that they're… they're… they're…" Shikaku just can not bear to say it. His son, for god's sake!

"Having sex?"

"Eep!"

* * *

**A/N:** Damn this chap was fun to write. And yea, to me Shikaku looks like a man who would not say eep! when hearing the word sex. But then I thought about it again and decided he would say eep! if it was about his son (whom he thought still to be a little kid who doesn't even know why girls exist). 

Note: **itadakimasu** is **bon appetit** in Japanese (I think).

Save me! (It's not an order though sounds like one... Would just like to live.) - www. lost. eu/ 18603


	5. Day 2 Bruises

**Disclaimer:** I still own no one.

**A/N:** Short chap. And again with the cigarettes. Yeah. But since I hate people who smoke, I'll make Neji be like me.

Thanks for all reviewers and to the one who got lost. Saved me.

* * *

**Day 2 - Bruises  
**

--- ---

Neji feels warm. In fact he feels hot at certain places. Not like that, but like there is something on him. An arm, maybe.

Neji opens his eyes only to see a room he doesn't recognize. He doesn't even see who is hugging him - his _bare chest_! - for the one is behind him. He is just about to turn and see who is the mysterious person daring to touch him but stops as the door opens and a woman steps in. Her eyes widen slightly as she sees Neji, then a smirk replaces the look. A scary smirk.

She turns to open the curtains with a quick flick of her wrists. "It's almost ten, Shikamaru. You should wake already."

Shikamaru? _'Shit.'_ Everything came back to Neji as clear as it had happened just a moment ago.

"You didn't knock, Mrs Nara", comes a sleepy voice from behind Neji.

"Sorry, Neji. I forgot for a moment that you were here."

Somehow the look on Mrs. Nara's face doesn't quite convince Neji. He turns to Shikamaru, shivering a bit as he sees himself looking back lazily. He rubs his temples. "Mom, could you leave. We'd like to get dressed..."

Mrs. Nara looks as if she had been caught stealing an apple or two. "Dressed. Oh, yes, yes.. Well then, I'll leave now... leave you all alone..." Muttering all this she leaves the room. Neji could swear he saw a glint of madness in her eyes before the door closed.

"So...?" Neji looks at all the bruises on his - well, Shikamaru's, but since he is using it right now it might as well be his - body. Gladly he didn't break any bones at the fall. Neji turns to check his own body while Shikamaru still would have only underwear on.

But seeing Shikamaru making his body have a pack of cigarettes on his hold makes him cross. So he does what he feels is the best opinion right now. He kicks his body right where he knows he had broken his leg, causing Shikamaru to yelp in pain and fall to the floor.

Quickly Neji snatches the cigarettes and stands to go throw them to the deepest hole in Earth. But Shikamaru gets his revenge and a sharp pain on his left rib makes him suffer the same fate.

So he falls to the floor, right to his own body's lap.

Shikamaru blushes a bit. He doesn't understand why. After all, it's only his own body on top of him, not someone else's. But now that it's being controlled by someone else... And somehow Shikamaru finds himself thinking about how perverted it would be to make love with yourself.

"Would you please move, Hyuuga", Shikamaru asks, grateful of the fact that Neji's head is on his stomach so he doesn't see him blushing.

"Da... mn it... Nara", Neji hisses, rolling to his back, his head now on Shikamaru's chest. "You didn't ha... have to kick so hard. I ca... can't breathe..."

"Well I can't move, so we're even."

They lay on the floor for a while until Neji tries to move. He manages to slip off from Shikamaru, then he takes a deep breath and clutches his ribs. Shikamaru feels sorry for him, a minute, until the tries to move himself, only to get stopped by white waves of pain through his body.

So he decides not to move his leg anymore.

"You should try Byakûgan..."

"Hm?"

"You have already memorized the hand seals, no?"

"...yeah." Somehow Shikamaru feels ashamed of the answer. He makes the hand seals, shouting out 'Byakûgan'. He feels a strange feeling in his eyes, like flame, but soon it is gone and it feels normal again. Being the genius Shikamaru is he soon learns the secrets of using the Byakuugan and grows quite bored of it. But in some way it is very interesting, he decides, zooming his vision to see what the two deers are doing on the backyard.

"How does it feel?"

Shikamaru turns his almost-all-seeing gaze to Neji. He looks like he has just lost something important to him. Shikamaru zooms the Byakûgan to see his chakra pathways, just to get rid of the look on his face. Then he stops the jutsu. "I don't think I'll need it much..."

Neji looks off to the distance.

--- ---

"Morning, Mrs Nara, Mr. Nara."

"Morning boys", Yoshiko greets, patting her husband's back for he had chocked on his tea. "Sit and have some breakfast."

"Sorry, mom, but we are in a hurry", Shikamaru answers, taking a toast and pouring jam carelessly over it.

"Is there something wrong with you leg, Neji? You're limping." Yoshiko nods to Neji's left leg.

"Oh, nothing, Mrs. Nara. Apparently I just banged it into something while sleeping."

Shikaku chokes yet again, this time falling off his chair.

"Well, mom, we'll be going", Shikamaru interrupts, looking at his dad questionly, heading to the front door.

"Will you be home this night?" Yoshiko asks worriedly, her mother instincts taking the lead.

"Don't worry, Mrs. Nara", Neji says, taking an apple to his hand. "I promise I'll return him to you if not today then tomorrow." Neji looks at Yoshiko with a small smile on his lips. Then he is off to follow Shikamaru.

"'Banged it into something' my ass", Shikaku mutters, rising from the floor. "I bet they had hot, wild sex all night..."

"I wonder which one of them is the seme."

--- ---

Shikamaru and Neji sigh simultaneously as they lean against the closed door of the Nara household. With no words they exchange their breakfast - the jam covered toast from Neji to Shikamaru and the apple from Shikamaru to Neji - and start walking towards Neji's house.

* * *

**A/N:** About the part where they kick each other: maybe overdid their pains, but then again, breaking a bone or two is painful. And when someone comes and kicks it when it has not been completely healed. Adding the fact that they hadn't had breakfast, since that makes it more painful. 

There's a tribute to a fic I read many times ago which none of you probably knows of 'cause it's in Finnish. The pairing was Potter/Potter, as in HarryPotter/HarryPotter. There Potter went back in time with that thing Herm had in book Azkaban and, well, had sex with himself. If I remember correct.

Yeah, that's all for today. Am in a hurry yet again. Thanks for reading this far.


	6. Day 2 Withdrawal symptoms

**Disclaimer:** I do not own anyone in this chapter except some random nameless people.

**A/N: Thank you for your comments**, they really make me happy and keep me on writing at times when I wouldn't want to do anything!

I hope you will like this chapter with short introduction of Neji's house and family and more misunderstanding and pervertness.

Oh gosh I just realized this **spoils** Naruto's ch… 320 or something. Slightly, though.

* * *

**Day 2 - Withdrawal symptoms  
**

--- ---

Shikamaru and Neji walk silently on the unusually quiet streets of Konoha, not saying a word.

"Four days until the anniversary of father's death", Neji blurts out.

Few passer-bys give a glance to them. Neji has turned his head away from Shikamaru.

"Shall we visit his grave?"

"He's not… buried in Konoha."

Silence surrounds them. To Shikamaru their steps on the ground sound too loud. He tries to walk silently. "Have you visited any… shrines or something to respect his memory?"

Neji looks at Shikamaru at the question. He can't look at him for long; it feels too strange to see yourself walking along with you. Neji thinks he can never get used to this, not though they would have to stand this situation for weeks after weeks. "When I was younger. But somehow… I didn't ever find the time to go to any temple when I grew up."

Shikamaru assumes Neji is only telling those things this openly because he subconsciously thinks he is talking to himself. And Shikamaru feels disappointed. "Asuma's anniversary is coming, too."

"…When?"

"In a week."

A silence, yet again. The boys glance at each other, ashamed over nothing. Seeing their own faces encourages them.

"I'll come if you come with me", Neji finally speaks up.

"OK."

They turn their gazes away yet again, but a relief can be seen on both their faces.

--- ---

'_Bigger than I thought'_, is the first thought that crosses Shikamaru's mind as he sees the Hyuuga residence. Behind the great wall he can see the decorated roof raising high over them.

"Come." They step to the open gate, their paces equal so no one would see how Nara Shikamaru is the one leading Hyuuga Neji.

The garden is big, as one could imagine from outside. There is everything that in a traditional garden should be, every tree and flower budding. In a short time the whole garden would be in full bloom, and Shikamaru hopes he would still be in Neji's body just to see it. He takes a deep breath, smelling the wonderful scent of recently watered plants.

"Hello, nii-san."

Hinata opens the front door, smiling to them.

"Morning, Hinata-sama", Shikamaru greets her, remembering Neji's teachings.

"Hi Neji, Shikamaru." Another girl steps into their view. She must be Hinata's little sister Hanabi, thinks Shikamaru, but decides still to greet her with only 'morning'.

"We're going shopping. I take it you are not interested in such worthless thing, Neji-nii-san?" Hanabi says sarcastically.

"Not really", Shikamaru answers, trying his best to sound like Neji.

"Well, see you later."

"Bye, nii-san, Shikamaru", Hinata smiles before following her sister.

The men step through the open door, entering into a great hall. Shikamaru looks around him, being impressed under his bored look. His eyes stop on the stairs leading into the darkness of the whatever there is upstairs.

"Hinata and Hanabi live upstairs", Neji says, noticing Shikamaru's look. He has taken his shoes off and has now slippers on. "These are for guests", he says, pointing at the right side of the shelf at the floor. "These at the upper left corner are mine." He takes the slippers off the shelf and hands them to Shikamaru.

Shikamaru feels uncomfortable having slippers on his feet for he has not been raised to such habit.

With silent voice Neji keeps on telling where everything is. "The first door on the right leads to the servants' room. The second is kitchen door."

Shikamaru flinches at the word 'servant'.

"On the left are guest room and uncle's room."

"Where does this lead?" Shikamaru asks, pointing at the corridor right from the door.

"To our training dojo. The corridor right to stairs leads to the dining room and left to stairs to my room and the garden."

Shikamaru nods, having already outlined the layout of the building in his mind. He starts walking towards Neji's room, Neji right behind him.

"It looks like no one's home", Shikamaru points out as he opens the door to the room that will be his for the time being.

"Uncle must have given the servants a day off."

Once again Shikamaru twitches at the word 'servant'.

Neji's room is clean. Though there is more furniture than in Shikamaru's room, it still looks about four times bigger. Shikamaru steps in and opens the door on the right. "You have your own bathroom?"

"There is one in every room."

Neji sits to a pillow on the floor, banging his head to the table in front of him. He feels horrible. He is cold, though it is warm in the room, and there is cold sweat on his forehead. He tries to stop the shaking of his hands.

"Give up and have a smoke already."

"What do you care? I am suffering this, not you."

"It's my body."

"By the time you get it back the withdrawal symptoms will be over."

Shikamaru shrugs and opens the wardrobe. He should get changed since the clothes he now has on have been on Neji's body since the incident and they are not in their best condition.

Behind him Neji stands up. "Remember; if you smoke, even _think_ about cigarettes, I'll cut your dick off."

After Neji leaves silence fills the whole room.

Shikamaru finds himself smirking carefully. _'I wonder which one he plans on cutting…'_ He takes off the ruined shirt and starts looking for a clean one.

--- ---

The door to Neji's room opens. "Remember. If you smoke, even think about cigarettes, I'll cut your dick off." A man steps out, closing the door behind him. He notices Hiashi standing there.

"Good morning", Hiashi says politely.

"Morning", the man answers after a small shock. . Hiashi recognizes him as the genius kid of Nara clan. "Excuse me…" The man walks past Hiashi to the front door. His face looks like he had just been through a tough exercise.

Hiashi decides to ignore the Nara boy. He opens Neji's door. "Neji…" His gaze falls upon his half naked nephew.

"Uncle", Neji says, his voice completely emotionless. "Do you want something?" He pulls a shirt over his head.

For a moment Hyuuga Hiashi forgets how to speak. He scans through the room. Something is definitely wrong, he just can't realize what. Then he sees the bathroom door. It is half open.

Neji never leaves doors open.

"Where did you spend your night?" he finally asks, having already forgotten why he came to see Neji in the first place.

Neji doesn't even blink at the question. "At Shikamaru's place." He pulls on a pair of clean trousers.

"…I see", Hiashi mutters, leaving the room. Immediately after closing the door he grabs his chest in fear of a sudden heart attack. _'Oh dear lord my nephew is a homosexual!'  
_

* * *

**A/N:** I'm pretty pleased with this chapter. At first it was hard to write, but after I got into the mood I just kept on writing. 

**Note:** I'm not at all sure if **outline** and **layout** are the right words… I hope you get what I mean. And about the word **withdrawal symptoms**… Does anyone know can I use the word symptom only?

Yeah. See you in next ch which, btw, will be their first time being separated in this fic!


	7. Day 2 Families

**Disclaimer:** I still don't own anyone in this fic… Except Shoki.

**A/N:** Short ch… filler, kinda. Didn't put here any Shika or Neji POV 'cause felt like it was time for outsider POVs.

Thanks for reviews and for helping me out with the words I wasn't so sure about.

Hope you enjoy this shortie.

* * *

**Day 2 - Families  
**

--- ---

Hinata opens the door to the garden, immediately spotting her cousin cousin sitting on a bench near the cherry trees. "Neji-niisan."

"Yes, Hinata-sama."

"Di-dinner is ready." Hinata gulps and looks at Neji's back.

"I'll come right along." Neji stands up and walks to the door to Hinata. He stops and holds his hand to the blushing girl. "Are you coming?"

"S-sure."

--- ---

Taking a tray with a tea can and two cups to her hands Nara Yoshiko walks to the living room where Shikaku is trying to shoo Shoki out like always. "Shikamaru, if you want a drink, there's lemon tea ready for you." She puts the tray to the living room table. Shikamaru is silent. "Shikamaru?"

"Yes, mom…"

Yoshiko knits her brows. Something is definitely wrong with her son. She turns to look at him lying on the sofa. Yoshiko can't see his face because it is buried under his hand, but his skin seems to be a strange dead white colour and his whole body seems to be shaking just a bit all the time. She rushes to him. "Oh dear, Shikamaru! What's wrong? You look really sick." She tries to remove his hand.

"…nothing. It's just the withdrawal symptoms…"

"Withdrawal?" Yoshiko removes her hand as if it burns. "So… you're giving up on cigarettes?"

"…yeah…"

Yoshiko glances at her son for a long time, not even noticing Shikaku who had appeared behind her, whining something about a bleeding finger. She sits to the sofa with her son. "What's with the sudden decision?"

Shikamaru doesn't answer.

--- ---

Hiashi tries not to look at Neji all the time. He really tries. But still he finds himself looking at Neji, trying to find some signs that would prove his suspicions to be true. Isn't it said that homosexuals act girly? So Hiashi switches his gaze between Hinata and Neji, feeling joyful as he notices they eat in the same manner. Then he compares his own way to theirs. A total disappointment takes him over as he realizes it is just a normal way of eating.

"So, Neji, what was Shikamaru doing here earlier?" Hiashi doesn't realize he had said that out loud until Neji glances at his direction.

"We were merely discussing over our new mission."

"Mission?" Hanabi interrupts. "May I ask what kind of?"

"Top secret."

The dinner continues with no more interrupts.

* * *

**A/N:** Next chapter has been started and is going… well, quite smoothly. I dunno if I can update it before school starts (14 th or 15th o' Aug (see, I don't' even know exactly WHEN it starts…)) 'cause I don't have much time to write it… 


	8. Day 3 Getting used to it

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anyone in this chapter, for they all belong to Kishimoto Masashi.

**A/N:** So, beware of a grinning Neji. Shaking his hips. (And I just had to use the word 'queer' in this ch.)

To me this chap looks like it changes its style in the middle, that first it is more angst, then comes the perverted humour part. Anygays, I hope it doesn't bother you.

Again, thanks for reviewing. Looks like B:S will get more comments than SukiSukiDaisuki, if we only count the first eight chaps' comments (if we'd count them all it'd clearly surpass SSD for I think this'll be about 15 or more chaps long…)

**Please check out the A/N at the end, for there are some explanations and a gift for you…**

* * *

**Day 3 - Getting used to it  
**

--- ---

'_The sky looks unusually bright today'_, thinks Shikamaru, lying on the roof of the Hyuuga mansion. He closes his eyes, the long hair of Neji's body waving to and out of his face. He performs the signs for the Hyuuga family's jutsu. "Byakûgan."

The manor looks quite busy compared to yesterday, now that the servants are back. Shikamaru switches his gaze to find out where the Hyuugas are. He already knows Hanabi is away, as he saw her leave earlier the day when he was trying to watch out for others to get to the roof without anyone seeing him. It would raise suspects to people's minds as Neji's uncle heard yesterday how 'Shikamaru' kindly asked 'Neji' not to smoke…

Shikamaru spots Hyuuga Hiashi closing the gate behind him, and as he notices Hinata is down at the garden with her team mates he decides it is safe to just lay back and relax.

The clouds reflect on his large, white eyes until he lowers his eyelids.

--- ---

Neji walks down the stairs, sliding his fingers absent-mindedly through his ponytail. Right after waking from a dream that was, strange enough, more like a nightmare he couldn't have stopped thinking about it. What could it mean?

Even though he knows he doesn't remember the entire dream, the parts that he remembers are so queer to understand that he is glad of it.

Neji's mind fills with the dream, Shikamaru in Neji's body, or is it Neji himself he doesn't know, screaming silently and clutching his head as if it would explode any minute. Then comes Hiashi, dragging Shikamaru from his long hair, throwing him into a wall that isn't a wall but a cherry tree. And it isn't Neji's body that lies there under the cherry tree, it is Shikamaru's but Neji doesn't know if it is Shikamaru or Neji in his body, and frankly he doesn't care as he once again sees how Shikamaru rips his heart out of his chest.

--- ---

"Morning, Shikamaru. How come you're awake already?"

Shikamaru looks slightly alarmed at the question. "I… couldn't sleep."

Shikaku raises his eyebrows along with Yoshiko. "Did you have a nightmare?"

"…yeah." Shikamaru walks briskly to pour some tea for himself, away from the curious glances his parents give to him.

"Could you tell about it to us?" Yoshiko suggests warily. "It could help."

Shikamaru turns to face his parents. He is silent for a long time, looking at them with an unreadable look in his dark eyes. "No", he then turns away. "It's just a nightmare." Suddenly looking slightly nauseous he puts his half eaten bread to the table.

Shikaku and Yoshiko follow him with worried look until he is out of the house.

--- ---

"Oi, Ten-Ten!"

Ten-Ten stops as she hears her name being called. The Nara genius walks up to her.

"Are you going to see Hyuuga?"

"Not exactly. But I'm going to the same direction." She smiles to him, having formed some kind of a weak spot towards Shikamaru. "Do you have a message for him or..?"

"If you could ask him to come to the usual training place in a short time."

"Does he really know which training place you mean?" Ten-Ten asks, thinking about all the places he could mean.

"Yes he knows."

The look in Shikamaru's eyes startles Ten-Ten. He looks almost angry. "Well then, I'll tell him."

"Thank you, you're a real help." Shikamaru smiles relievedly and waves at her, leaving for the opposite direction. Ten-Ten watches him go, until he has disappeared, then turns around, blushing slightly. _'There's something different about him than before.'_

--- ---

Shikamaru stares at a wooden pole standing at the clearing in the woods. Three shurinkens stick on it, forming a triangle to it with a kunai in the middle. _'Coordination seems to be working just fine…'_

"Training, hm?"

Neji walks up to Shikamaru who doesn't bother to turn.

"You could try my jutsu."

"Kagemane?"

"Do you – "

"Yes."

" – want to marry me?" Shikamaru turns around, landing an amused look to his body. "I'm glad to hear you're that eager."

"Well, I've always had a weak spot for myself…" Then Neji knits his brows. "Get serious, Nara. We have to act well or others will find out."

"I am doing my part perfectly well", Shikamaru narrows his pearl eyes. "Unlike you. Don't you realize how suspicious it is for you to ask Ten-Ten to deliver a message of this meeting to me?"

"Well I apologize for assuming that you could talk friendly with a person not from your team." Neji crosses his arms and glares. "_And_ for thinking you'd like to meet me in order to prove our acts."

Shikamaru waves his long hair to his shoulder with an emotionless face worth of Neji's. "It's just that it's strange for me to ask Ten-Ten to do a favour for me when I hardly even know her."

Neji turns his eyes away from Shikamaru. "Well, apparently I don't know you enough to know something like that." Then, without another word, he has done the seals Shikamaru knows throughout and shouted 'kagemane no jutsu'.

"Damn", Shikamaru mumbles as he loses control over his body. He glances at Neji, seeing him smirk on the other end of the shadow.

Neji raises his arms, Shikamaru doing the exact same thing like a mirror image. "This is fun." He grins even wider, now shaking his hips and arms like dancing some strange dance.

Shikamaru sweatdrops. _'I knew this wasn't a good idea…'_ "Think about what you make yourself look like, Hyuuga", he remarks, turning around, shaking vividly his hips with no control.

"Do you mean what I make your body or my body look like?"

"This, of course."

"Oh don't worry, mine looks sexy no matter what it's doing."

"… Doesn't that kinda mean that you just called me sexy since I'm in this body right now?"

"…………..uh…………"

"Oh never mind."

* * *

**A/N:** So you survived this far without dying (of nosebleed, I was hoping… I get one whenever I think about them shaking themselves XD ) 

So, now that you've read this, I'd like to babble… First, about the dream part. It was really random, I just added it, I hadn't planned it or anything. It just hit me, like a lightning, and I had a clear vision of the dream that Neji had. And so I wrote it, with my freaky style to emphasize (?) the queerness of the dream.

Secondly, there's a tribute. The part: "Do you – " "Yes." " – want to marry me?" is from Rhysenn's 'Irresistible Poison'. It's a wonderful fic worth reading (if you fancy Malfoy/Potter).

So, now something for you… A small fan art I made just for my readers. A smoking 'Neji' and 'Shikamaru' in strange clothes... Please remove the space - agetada. deviantart. com/ art/ Blackmail-63573358

Save me? - www. lost. eu/ 18603


	9. Day 3 Bathing

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anyone in this chapter.

**A/N:**** All the chapters have now been rewritten** to match each other better. They did not change dramatically except for **ch 8** where I added a scene to make the story flow better.

Sorsa A Jänis: Thanks for your critique. It was needed though at first I was gonna slit my wrists because of it. I admit that I've been making too short chaps, but now that someone's pushed me to the right direction I'm trying to make them longer. But I ain't gonna do anything about the A/Ns, 'cause to me they're an important part of fanfiction.

* * *

**Day 3 - Bathing**

--- ---

Panting rapidly Neji lets his legs bent and sits to the ground. Shikamaru glances over to him, brushing his palm over his split lip. "You are not in a good shape", Neji breaths out, staring at his slightly shaking hands.

"To me it looked like you did well."

"But you did even better."

Shikamaru walks a few steps to Neji. "Are you feeling well?"

"Hell no!" Neji snaps at him. Shikamaru finds it a bit scary, being glared at by his own dark eyes. "Because of your damned smoking I can't even train properly!"

Shikamaru slits his eyes. "Let me correct that it's mostly because you _don't_ smoke."

"Mostly, maybe, but the main problem is your smoking."

And like many times before, silence falls over them. Shikamaru stares into nothing, his arms crossed, a far away look in his white eyes. Neji is bent on the ground, his arms dangling limply on his sides, watching the interesting life of his toes.

"Shikamaru?"

"Yeah?"

"You're a genius, right." Neji glances over his shoulder at Shikamaru. "How long do you think it takes until we are cured?"

A warm look softens Neji's arrogant face as Shikamaru smiles at him. "You're a genius, too. Why are you asking me?"

Neji looks slightly surprised. Shikamaru turns his face away, feeling the easily coming blush of Neji's creeping onto his face.

"Should we get back now?" I'm all sweaty, I'd like to wash." Neji stands up and makes a move to leave.

"It's a long way to my home." Shikamaru follows Neji.

Neji stops and turns to Shikamaru. "Is that an invitation to my own house?" He has a playful smile on his lips.

"Might be." Shikamaru shrugs, and a soft and victorious smile crosses his face right after Neji has turned his eyes away from him. "I got lost in your wardrobe."

"No wonder. Your wardrobe is so small, there isn't anything at all." Neji leaps to make their way back to the Hyuuga mansion. _'I gotta buy him new clothes. Much new clothes…'_

--- ---

"Shikaku, please, walk a bit faster."

"I'm trying, dear, but it's hard with all these packages."

"You're a ninja. It shouldn't be hard for you."

Shikaku growls and walks even slowlier. Yoshiko shakes her head but keeps her own pace up. Then she spots someone very familiar a way from her. She hurries to him. "Good morning, Mr. Hyuuga."

The man turns to her, bowing his head. "Good morning, Mrs. Nara."

Yoshiko smiles to him, she too bowing her head. "It's a lovely day, isn't it."

"Very lovely, indeed." Mr. Hyuuga glances at Yoshiko. "Say, Mrs. Nara, have you seen Neji today?"

"Neji? No, I haven't. Why?"

"I thought he might be with Shikamaru." He seems to have problems with saying this out loud. "They spend a lot of time together nowadays, don't they?"

"Oh yes." Yoshiko smiles widely, almost scaring Hiashi away. "It is inescapable, now that they are dating, I mean." She clasps her hands together, her eyes glittering. "Maybe they'll get married! Then we would be one big family. How lovely it'd be!"

"Yes, real lovely…" Mr Hyuuga does not sound convicing. "Well, I must keep going. Have a nice day, Mrs. Nara."

As Mr. Hyuuga walks away, a bit wobbling, Shikaku finally reaches his wife.

"What did you say to him?" Shikaku looks after the man. "He looks upset."

"I was just wondering when our boys will get married." The glitter still in her eyes, she keeps on dreaming. "I'm so glad Neji looks feminine, he can have a real pretty wedding dress…"

--- ---

"Is it clear?"

"Yup. No one around."

Jumping down from the wall surrounding the house Neji and Shikamaru get in through the garden door, and rush to Neji's room.

"What's with all this hiding?" Shikamaru throws his sandals to one corner of the room, following Neji to his bathroom. He gets blinded by a cloth.

"I just don't want uncle to find out." Neji stops at the bathroom door as he gets a shirt to his face. "Real mature, Nara."

"Look who's talking."

"I threw it accidentally. You intentionally."

Shikamaru closes the door behind them as Neji lets hot water flow into the bathtube. He embraces himself as shivers run down his spine.

"You get cold easily", he points out to Neji and walks closer to him on the cold floor.

Neji gives a look at him over his shoulder. "Shower yourself, then get in the bath. You'll get warm."

Still bent over the tap Neji hears Shikamaru strip his few remaining clothes out of the way. He feels the urge to turn and look, but knowing how perverted it would look – although it is _his_ body – he doesn't.

Shikamaru walks to the shower and turns it to hot. After standing under the comfortably warm water for a while he turns to look at Neji who is still bent over the tap. He takes the jet to his hands, smirking.

"AIYEEH!" Neji screams as the hot water hits his unprotected upper body, soaking him completely.

Shikamaru laughs madly from the other side of the room.

"This is not funny!" Neji stands up, carefully leaping to Shikamaru. He takes the jet from him, pointing it to Shikamaru. "Revenge!" he laughs as Shikamaru is the water's next victim.

"Geh! Stop it!" Shikamaru tries to cover himself with his arms for nothing.

Neji smirks and closes the tap. "Get up, you look silly", he lies, looking at the slender form of himself lying delicately on the floor, nothing covering him. _'Like a painting, too beautiful to be real.'_ He moves to stand with his legs on either side of Shikamaru's ribs, offering his hand to him.

Shikamaru moves his hair away from his face and smiles to Neji. He grabs the offered hand and stands up carefully, not wanting to slip on the wet floor. "You'll propably have to leave those to dry here", he says, meaning Neji's trousers.

"Because of some idiot's thoughtless act", Neji says, staring into Shikamaru's eyes.

"It was worth it."

Neji is still holding Shikamaru's hand inbetween them. He looks at it, then lets go, but doesn't move away.

Shikamaru makes the first move, turning around to the bath. He steps in, his long hair immediately floating silkly around him.

Neji sighs, haven't even noticed his held breath. He closes the tap, then starts tugging his wet trousers off of himself.

So Neji slides into the bath's warm embrace.

"You can take the hair tie off if you want." Shikamaru appears next to Neji's shoulder.

"Do I still have to learn the deers' names?"

"No… I doubt you'll need to know them."

Finally having gotten the hairtie off Neji shakes his head a bit. The dark bangs fall around his face, reaching his shoulders.

Shikamaru grabs Neji and turns him briskly around to have a look at him. "I really look different with my hair down."

Neji blushes. Shikamaru does so also, more than Neji, and lets go of him. They turn away from each other.

The steam rising from the bath gets thinner every minute. The water is also getting clearer. Neji can almost see his reflection on it. _'Almost'_, he repeats in his mind and imagines the face looking at him on the water is his very own.

Shikamaru keeps his head down, his cold hands on his hot cheeks. _'He's got pretty thin fingers'_, he notices his thoughts slow. _'And thick eyelashes.'_ Shikamaru wraps his arms around his knees, letting his heavy head rest on them. _'If I stand up now, his hair will stick all around me.'_ He smiles tiredly, looking over to Neji a short way from him. He is staring into the depths of the bath, deep in his own thoughts. And though right now he looks exactly like Shikamaru, even someone not knowing of their switch would look twice at him to confirm he is Nara Shikamaru who just has a similar aura to Hyuuga Neji's.

"You know – "

They both stop at the same time, looking straight into their own eyes. This time they don't blush.

"You first", Shikamaru nods, moving the damp strands of hair away from the eyelashes where they had been tangled.

"I was just going to say how I always thought you were just a grumpy bastard who couldn't talk to people." Neji smiles at Shikamaru's not so pleased look. "But you're quite nice."

"Funny how I was gonna say I always thought you were a cocky bastard who underestimates everyone. But you're not that bad."

"Not that bad?" Neji quirks his eyebrow in a half irritated manner. "I call you nice and you say I'm 'not that bad'."

"'Quite nice' and 'not that bad' mean almost the same."

"Yes, almost. But almost doesn't –

"Cut it out."

Neji moans in displeasure and squirms out of Shikamaru's cold fingers' touch. He glares at him, rubbing his neck. "You really know where to snatch."

"Sorry. Just wanted you to relax."

"Relax?" Neji glances ta him, wondering what does he mean by that. The pain in his neck is far from relaxing…

"You think too much." Shikamaru has moved to behind Neji, letting his hands gather all the damp locks out of the sides of his face.

"As if you don't. You have propably planned this conversation long ahead and are manipulating me to say what you want."

Shikamaru rubs Neji's neck and shoulders slowly with circling moves. "At least planning is better than analyzing."

Neji doesn't answer to this. Either he doesn't have any good remark or he just doesn't feel the need to continue on speaking.

Shikamaru lowers his hand a bit on Neji's back. The circlingmoves his fingers make get bigger and wider until he lets his hands fall down to the water along his back.

"I think I should go now."

Neji stands up from the water, making his way to the door. He grabs a towel and opens the door, not once turning around to see Shikamaru's downcast head.

Shikamaru closes his eyes just as Neji closes the bathroom door. The water is now only warm. He embraces himself in cold, then stands up to follow Neji.

Going through his wardrobe Neji only quickly glances over his shoulder as he hears stepsbehind him. "I'm borrowing my clothes. I hope it doesn't bother you."

Sghikamaru chuckles to the absurdness of the sentence. "Go ahead."

"Is anyone home yet?" Neji starts brushing his damp hair and finally turns to Shikamaru, trying to keep his eyes from wandering to the towel covering his body.

Shikamaru forms the seals quicker than ever. "Byakûgan." Neji turns away as the veins appear. "Your uncle is in his room. And there are some servants in the kitchen. No one else." Ending the jutsu Shikamaru steps closer to Neji. "Let me do that."

Neji sighs and gives the hair tie to Shikamaru who starts pulling his body's hair into a tight ponytail. "Ouch", Neji says, not really meaning it.

"Sorry." Shikamaru puts the hairtie on and – without thinking twice – pats Neji on his head.

Neji pushes the hand away and gives a glare towards the smirking Shikamaru. "I'll get going now." He is on his way to the door when he stops. "We should not meet tomorrow, it'd look too suspicious."

"Fine with me", Shikamaru shrugs and pulls his hand through his wet hair. "I'll get to know your teammates."

Neji looks at Shikamaru, a strange lok in his dark eyes. Shikamaru answers to his gaze without noticing how Neji steps closer to him. And then he feels a firm grip on his neck as Neji pulls him into a light kiss.

"Bye", Neji says huskily and soon he is gone.

Shikamaru stares after him, his lips parted, a rose tinge on his cheeks. Finally he lowers his head, hiding behind Neji's long, black hair. _'This I hadn't planned…'_

--- ---

Even the cold wind outside is not enough to cool down Neji's heated body.

* * *

**A/N:** Phew! Finally here. I hope you like this chapter, with all this NejiShika in it. It wasn't intentional, it just came, straight from my heart.**  
**

The shower part was a real problem. First it wasn't there until I read somewhere that japanese people wash themselves before taking a bath, so I added it. And the most problem was since I didn't know what's the thing called where the water comes. I just put 'jet' there… Help, anyone?

So, I really don't have anything more to say. Just enjoy, and save me if you please - www. lost. eu/ 18603


	10. Day 4 Confused minds

**Disclaimer:** The owner of all the characters in this chapter is Kishimoto Masashi. The plot belongs to me.

**A/N:** Hello again. I hope it hasn't been too long since my last update. But, here is the (hopefully) much-longed next chapter. Their teammates see them in their current condition… but can they keep the act? Save me and find out: www. lost. eu/ 18603 (Yeah, am dying in a day so saving won't be bad…)

Enjoy!

* * *

**Day 4 - Confused minds  
**

--- ---

Shikamaru stares at the piece of bread in front of him, not really seeing it. His mind is working on the events of yesterday. The only thing he can think about is Neji, Neji, Neji…

Shikamaru groans as the image of Neji kissing him floats once again into his mind. And like before, first Neji is Neji and then he is Shikamaru and then he is back in his own body.

"Neji-nii-san?"

'_If he wanted to mix my head with that kiss, then he succeeded very well…'_ Shikamaru turns to look at Hinata over the table. "Yes, Hinata-sama?"

Hinata looks at who she thinks is Neji with her large eyes. "Are you… Are you okay?"

"Yes." Shikamaru looks at Hinata, surprised at the question. "Why wouldn't I be?"

Hinata blushes and hides behind her teacup. "I… I just thought… You seem to be in your own thoughts a lot."

"Well aren't I always", Shikamaru chuckles slightly.

Hinata blushes even more but she can't hide her soft smile from Shikamaru's watchful eyes.

--- ---

Burning bright light shines through Neji's eyelids. "Put it out…" he mumbles slowly and tries to cover his eyes with his arm.

"Get up, lad", man's voice says. "Ino and Chôji are here."

"What?" Neji springs up into a sitting position from his futon. His vision turns immediately into a blur and he has to hold his head still for a while to see again.

"They came a moment ago. Get ready and I'll get them 'ere."

Finally Neji realizes the man he is talking with must be Shikamaru's father. He opens his eyes to see an older version of Shikamaru looking at him.

"You look a bit dizzy. Are you okay?"

Neji combs a hand through his now open hair. "Yeah, I'm just… it's just I practised yesterday…"

"And you don't feel well 'cause you quitted smoking?" The man smiles softly. "That's well done. I should too, Yoshiko's always complaining about it…"

Shikamaru's father opens the door and leaves, and Neji could swear he heard him mumble something among the lines of 'that Neji's made a saint of my boy'.

--- ---

Shikamaru walks in the garden, wanting a moment alone without raising any suspicions, otherwise he would have gone to the roof. He raises his head to look at the various trees around him, they all still budding. He turns his head more to catch a glimpse of the pure white clouds sailing on the sky. He misses already the peaceful time when he did not have to watch his every move or gaze over his shoulder for intruders if he wanted to do something he really enjoyed.

Shikamaru sighs and turns around to face the man who had joined him in the garden.

"Don't sigh, my youthful friend", Rock Lee grins to Shikamaru and grabs his shoulder. "Because now is the time for celebration."

Shikamaru only raises his eyebrow in a slightly irritated manner.

"I have come to invite you personally to my wedding, which takes place on 22nd of this month."

Shikamaru's eyes widen. His brains quickly search for any memory of Rock Lee sharing an intimate moment with someone. "On 22nd? That's six days from now…" His mind registers one memory of a day when he had seen Lee and the Kazekage walking around town, hand in hand, giving kisses to each other once in a while.

"Yes. I know it must sound all rushed to you but we know what we feel."

'_Rock Lee and Gaara?'_ "I didn't mean it that way… I was only thinking out loud…"

"Lee."

Shikamaru turns to look at the Kazekage who had creeped to the garden without either of them noticing. He bows shortly to the man. "Kazekage-sama", he mumbles.

"Nice to see you, Hyuuga", Gaara says monotonically.

Shikamaru can't believe his ears. _'Well, Neji's…'_ Had the Gaara just greeted him with five words? This can't be. The last time he saw him he was a bastard, only glaring at everyone. Shikamaru rubs his temples. _'That Lee has done wonders to him…'_

"Neji, is the day okay with you?" Lee's bright black eyes are once again on Shikamaru.

"Yes, it is…"

"Will you come with someone?"

"I…"_'We may have not changed back by that time.'_ "I'll come with Nara." Shikamaru feels the starting blush on his cheeks, for he knows the real reason why he had said that. But he shakes such things out of his mind.

"If you invite everyone personally we will not make it in time", Gaara says with his calm, rough voice. He grabs Lee's hand in his and pulls him slightly.

"Gaara-kun, don't be in such a rush. Let me say good bye to him properly."

The Kazekage crosses his arms but does not say anything.

Lee gives a quick hug to the stunned Shikamaru. "Good bye, Neji."

"…bye."

Lee turns to follow Gaara who is already leaving the garden, still once turning around to wave to Shikamaru. "Don't be sad, Neji. Just follow you heart."

"My jealousy is rising…." Shikamaru hears Gaara mutter as the two of them disappear. He laughs softly, a bitter sound in it. _'Such good advice. Lee. But so hard to follow.'_

--- ---

As Neji gets back to Shikamaru's room many moments later, having been searching for a hair brush, he opens the door and sees Shikamaru's teammates sitting on his futon like they own the place.

"Long time no see, Shikamaru", the girl, Ino, says and jumps up to hug Neji.

"We met just few days ago", Neji mumbles and hopes he is in character.

"That doesn't count. You barely even greeted us, you were so busy with Neji…" Ino looks at Neji with a mischievous smile while Chôji just keeps his eyes on him. "Speaking of Neji, aren't those his pants?"

"No", Neji answers automatically, then looks down at what he is wearing.

"Yes they are." Ino points at the left hem of his trousers. "I remember that cut. Besides, you don't have any beige pants."

Neji stares at the smiling girl. Seriously, this is scary. Neji barely knows she exists but she seems to have been examining Neji's trousers.

"So it's true what I heard? That you and Neji are together?" Ino keeps on going.

For amoment Neji's brains don't understand the sentence, until he realizes the 'you' in it meant 'Shikamaru', not 'Neji'. Unfortunately that short silence means 'yes' to Ino.

"I knew it!" She slaps Neji's back. "'twas about time you get a man for yourself."

"I heard you quit smoking", Chôji finally opens his mouth, but still keeps on staring at Neji with too much intensity to his liking.

"For him? It must be really serious…"

"We are not together", Neji says and turns his head away from the girl. "And I did not quit for him."

"Whatever you say…" Ino smiles in a meaningful way to Chôji. "But I gotta run now. I promised I'd help mom and dad with this huge flower order we have." Ino smiles to her teammates. "Bye guys. Come visit me someday with Neji, Shikamaru."

"We're not together", Neji repeats with a slightly irritated voice.

Ino just smiles as she opens the door. "Whatever you say." Then she is gone, leaving Neji alone with Chôji who has finally moved his eyes from him.

Suddenly a thought occures to Neji. _'What if Shikamaru and Chôji are together?'_ Neji finds himself gulping in fear. The idea seems possible, for even he knows Chôji and Shikamaru spend quite a lot of time together. _'But I doubt Shikamaru would have left such a thing untold… Or maybe Shikamaru has feelings towards him and he knows that and is going to make his move…'_ All the possible ideas and even the not-so-possible ones go through Neji's mind with an incredible speed, until Chôji wakes him up to the reality.

"What's going on between you and Shikamaru?"

The memory of yesterday rushes to Neji's head and makes him blush a deep shade of pink. How he had lost his sanity and kissed Shikamaru, kissed his own body dammit! But he had looked so beautiful standing there, his wet hair falling to his shoulders, gazing at Neji with those big, pearly white eyes…

"Did you just say 'you _and Shikamaru_'?" Neji turns to fully face Chôji, hoping he had heard wrong.

"Yes."

Their gazes lock. Neji knows he must look stupid with an utterly surprised look on his face, but Chôji just keeps his calming smile on.

"You're Neji, right?"

Neji nods. "Yes. How did you find out? That I'm not… him?"

"There was something about your acting that was irritating me all the time. Your manner of speaking is different than Shikamaru's. And you stand straight."

Neji let's himself slump. He can't help the small smile on his lips. "If it's that evident, then how you noticed but his parents didn't?"

Chôji shrugs. "Since we're in the same team I hang quite much with him."

'_He knows Shikamaru almost better than his parents and I hardly even know Lee is engaged to the Kazekage…'_ Neji feels a tiny sting of ashament in his heart. He coughs once, partly to clean his lugns, partly to gather the courage to say the next sentence. "Could you… help me to get into character?"

--- ---

Half of the day has passed, and to Shikamaru it sfeels like twice the time. Never before has he felt such boredom in such short time. As he cannot even sit back and relax, because Neji does not do such things, it feels even more boring.

Neji, in Shikamaru's body, flashes in his mind.

Shikamaru shakes his head slightly, his hair falling to his face. He can manage just fine without Neji. Really, just fine, he does not need that overconfident pretty-boy –

"Neji?"

Hiashi has joined Shikamaru who only gives a quick glance towards him.

"I have something to discuss with you."

'_Why now? Why not three days ago?'_ Shikamaru sighs mentally and turns his emotionless face towards Neji's uncle. "Yes, uncle?"

"Please sit down."

Shikamaru does as told and takes a seat next to the older man. For a moment they sit in silence.

"I am aware of your choice, Neji."

Shikamaru keeps silent because really; he has no idea what choice he is talking about. _'Not definitely about his pretty-boy looks and clothes; he looks just like an older version of Neji'_, he thinks, almost humoured.

"And though there has never been such thing in this clan, I am proud of your courage to be what you are."

Maybe this is something they have discussed before with Neji, and he should know it. _'I'll find out sooner or later…'_ But there, sitting on that bench in the Hyuuga garden with Hyuuga Hiashi-sama talking to him as he was Neji, Shikamaru does not feel like a genius at all.

"Your… love towards boys instead of girls is acceptable. And I do not have any objection about is. I just hoped you would have come to me to tell it."

'_So this is about Neji being… gay?'_ Shikamaru raises his eyes to look at the man next to him, his eyes totally calm though his head is a mess right now. "I am sorry, uncle, but I wanted to be sure of myself before coming to you." _'I just hope this is what he would say in this situation…'_

And it did not occur to him, not once during the conversation, that some of the acts he did as Neji might have turned Hiashi to this particular conclusion. Some genius he is.

"I am only glad that you chose such honest and well boy like Nara Shikamaru."

Shikamaru's thoughts stop dead at the precise moment he hears his own name. _'He thinks I'm with…? Dammit, Neji'll never forgive me for this.'_

* * *

**A/N:** Hopefully you liked. I myself had fun writing the last part of this chap. And honestly, it feels like Shikamaru left his super brains in his body since otherwise he would have figured out immediately what Hiashi meant. But if he had, then he would not face Neji's wrath in the next chapter… 

And Chôji found out about their switch. Man, he must be a genius too…

Please tell me if there are any typos. I didn't see any but since I am in no good condition there might be some... or more. (An author should never make excuses for passing proofreading...)

Please, save me: www. lost. eu/18603

Have a nice day. Hopefully the next chapter will be up before 2nd month of 2008...


	11. Day 5 His heart and his soul

**Disclaimer:** I do not own anyone in this chapter; they are the property of Masashi Kishimoto.

**A/N:** This chapter came out really good, I think. The start was hard, as always, but then I just kept on writing and writing and writing and I was just like a movie in my head. I did my best to write down the theme and their feelings. Hope you enjoy.

Note: I have put names for the chapters. Not anything fancy, just names and after that the day that it currently is. I wanted you to know how long they have been switched so that's why.

* * *

**Day 5 - His heart and his soul  
**

"Hey, lad." Shikaku waves his hand in front of his son's face. "Lad, you awake?"

"Huh?" Shikamaru startles and looks at his father.

Shikaku crosses his arms. "What's wrong with you nowadays, Shikamaru? You're not sleeping all the time, yet you're doing nothing. Don't you have any missions?"

Shikamaru rubs his temples. "Dad, I told you already, I have a mission with Hyûga."

"Then why aren't you doing anything? You're just lazing around every day like… like some lovesick fool."

"I do not love him, okay?" Shikamaru glares furiously at his father. He is about to say something more but decides to stay silent instead. "I don't even like him…" Shikamaru mutter angrily to himself as he turns away from the living room and towards the front door.

Shikaku stares after him. Then he smirks. _'So he does like him…'_

Shikamaru breathes rashly as he stands before Neji's wardrobe. All the clothes he tore from their proper places lay on the floor around him. He looks at them, now realizing what he had done. _'Dammit…'_

Shikamaru hits himself on his face, hard enough to hurt himself but not too hard to leave any mark on Neji's face. The pain should clear out his thoughts.

A creak from the door makes Shikamaru turn there like a wild beast, his muscles tense and all ready to attack.

Shikamaru stares on the doorway, not moving an inch, but his dark eyes betraying him.

'_No, he's not Shikamaru'_, Shikamaru tells to himself, staring back into the frightened eyes of the man. _'He's Neji, Neji, not Shikamaru but Neji.'_

"Let's clean up this mess", Neji says as he moves inside.

Shikamaru follows Neji's every move under his long messy hair. He did not ask why, Shikamaru notices. He joins Neji to gather the clothes.

Neji did not ask why Shikamaru did this. Shikamaru would like to think of it as a sign of some kind, but probably it is just fear. Fear of rising up more questions that would be as hard to answer.

Shikamaru chuckles suddenly, gaining a look from Neji. It sure is funny how a small kiss can change Shikamaru's world this much. Yesterday it had only messed up his head, but he had managed to remain calm. But today, when he realized he would see Neji again…

'_Love is such a troublesome thing.'_

Neji stands on the hall of the Hyûga mansion, his hand resting on the knob of his own room's door. He breathes shallowly, shivers running all over his body.

'_It was just a kiss. A peck on his lips, nothing more.'_ Neji closes his eyes angrily. He doesn't believe his own words.

Neji takes a deep breath to calm himself down. _'He probably doesn't even remember it anymore.'_ The grip on the door handle tightens as he tries to prove himself._'If he does, I'll silence him.'_

Neji opens the door quickly, not wanting to turn around on the last second. The sight he meets frightens him, it frightens him more than many things in his life have before. Because Neji sees himself staring at him, the big, white Byakûgan eyes full of will to kill, his whole body shaking to tear him apart, tear him apart with those hands that should be in his control. Neji stares and stares, knowing he had already revealed his fear to the beast, knowing painfully well he could do nothing if he wanted to kill him. And then he could just go on, go on with his life, forgetting all about him, not even remembering the name Nara Shikamaru…

A click echoes in Neji's mind as he wakes from his slumber of insanity. "Let's clean up this mess", he says, forcing himself to step inside the room with the crazy Nara. He feels the big eyes' gaze on him as he gathers the clothes from the floor, and as Shikamaru starts helping him he steals a glance towards his direction, all the time repeating in his head: _'That's Nara, I'm not Nara, that's Nara, I'm not Nara, that's Nara…'_

A small laugh from Shikamaru's side stops Neji's mantra, but unexpectedly it is even more comforting. Neji dares to look at him again, this time with a question in his eyes. Shikamaru has a peaceful smile on his face, like he has just come to terms with himself without even realizing it.

"Do you remember why I came today?" Neji asks Shikamaru with his back to him.

"Today's the anniversary of your father's death", Shikamaru answers. "Do you want to leave now?"

Neji feels the need for fresh air as Shikamaru steps closer to him. "Yes."

The yard of the shrine has a calming effect. Though walking amongst all the graves of people that have died at too young age Neji and Shikamaru feel all their worldly worries disappear.

They kneel before the shrine, Neji to pray and Shikamaru to pretend he is Neji.

"Shouldn't you pray too?"

"Why?" Shikamaru gives a quick glance to his own body's concentrated face. Neji's eyes are closed, and though Shikamaru knows Neji can feel his gaze he keeps on looking. He really doesn't care now.

"For your soul to be saved", answers Neji.

"That's for you to do."

Neji opens his eyes to stare at Shikamaru. "And what is that supposed to means?" he asks with an angry yet noble voice, and it sounds so funny coming from the mouth of Nara Shikamaru that Shikamaru is just about to laugh out loud. But he remembers where he is and stays quiet.

"I just meant that I don't care if my soul is saved or not. If you care, you can try to save me, but I won't bother. It'd be better if it was just taken here and now so you could continue with your life."

Neji stares at Shikamaru, his hands shaking on his knees.

Shikamaru doesn't know why he said so. Maybe he did it because he wants to see Neji's reaction. Would Neji just toss it away like some meaningless trash, or would he ask Shikamaru why until they would both be in a situation where there is no coming back.

Shikamaru hopes it is the latter, for he has finally confessed to himself the thing he always knew in his heart. But now his heart in away so he must think about it in a different way.

Shikamaru has finally admitted the fact that he has fallen for Hyûga Neji a long, long time ago.

All this talk of souls to be taken away right now makes Neji shiver. He sees the sincerity in Shikamaru's eyes. Neji would love to go and touch him, move just half a feet to Shikamaru's side, put his hand to his and ask why would he do such a thing.

But Neji knows he can't, so he closes his eyes and keeps on praying, fighting back the tears that came from remebering the dream. The dream where Shikamaru ripped his heart out time after time, leaving Neji with nothing but a burning pain in his own heart. "Why would you? Do you really think I could just continue with my life if you just dropped dead? What would even happen if your soul flied away?"

Shikamaru is silent for so long that Neji really is scared he died. He opens his eyes and sees Shikamaru looking at him with his own clan's eyes.

"Probably my body would die and you'd return back to yours."

"Wouldn't that mean my body had died once because of you, and yet I would be alive?"

Shikamaru doesn't answer.

Neji encourages his heart. He closes his eyes again. "Come closer to me so I can feel you; I want to know if you were to die now."

Shikamaru moves closer to Neji, so close that their legs touch each other. Neji feels breathless when Shikamaru's stunningly hot but comfortable body heat covers his right side.

So Neji prays for a moment, not exactly knowing how long, only staying there to enjoy his companion's body heat, not even caring about cramps on his legs. _'O father, give me strength to survive this.'_ Finally he opens his eyes and rests his hands. Shikamaru speaks up.

"You got invited to a wedding."

"Lee's?" Neji is surprised. He never thought they would get married this soon.

"Yep. On 22nd."

"But that's… five days from now. What if we have not changed back by then? Did you say yes to him?"

"I said you'll go with me."

That shuts Neji up. He glances carefully at Shikamaru. "If we are changed back by then…" Neji stops. He can't end the question, no way._'…would you still come with me?'_

Shikamaru waits for Neji to continue, but when it seems that Neji won't speak, he does. "And your uncle thinks you're gay with me."

Neji is about to blush. He turns his head away from Shikamaru, moving accidentally so that their arms touch. Neither of them moves away.

"Your friend Chôji found out. He said he will help me to the best of his ability, so you don't have to bother anymore."

"What about you teaching me?"

"You have learned well. I don't think you need much more teaching." Neji moves from his kneeled position and stretches his legs carefully. Shikamaru does the same. "Has it healed already?"

"What?" Shikamaru looks at Neji.

"My left leg. I broke it before we changed and it had not healed back then."

Shikamaru touches his leg and presses it everywhere and Neji wonders what would it feel like if Shikamaru were to touch him like that.

"I think it has completely healed. What about you? Do you wanna have a smoke at all?"

"Definitely not." Neji smiles a bit.

"Then your withdrawal symptoms must be over. Though I think your trembling must be 'cause of it; you've been trembling a lot today. Or are you cold?"

Neji is surprised of this sudden worry that is not at all like Shikamaru. He shakes his head to his question. "It's just the symptoms, nothing else." _'Nothing else but you, Shikamaru. Why do you have to be the only source of warmth in this cold world?'_

* * *

**A/N:** So, now that you've survived here, I'd like to ask you: What was the best part of this chapter? Was there any sentence that you just read five times 'cause it's so wonderful, or a part you could clearly imagine in your mind? I'd like to know, so please tell me if there was something that just knocked you out with its greatness.

Happy New Year Everyone


	12. Day 6 Someone special

**Disclaimer:** I own no one in this chapter except for the random guys and Seito, everyone else is the property of Kishimoto Masashi.

**A/N:** Wow, took less than two months to write this chapter. I'm really getting better. :D Well, no ways, sorry for taking this long. I just hope this is worth all the waiting.

The first parts of this chap were the hardest to write and I like them the less out of this chap. But I think Neji's POVs in the end came out well and I like them quite much though the ending was real hard to write. (I was switching between TWO different ending alternatives for half an hour.)

Enjoy.

* * *

**Day 6 – Someone special**

--- ---

"I'm glad you joined us, Neji-nii-san", Hanabi grins to Shikamaru.

"Why you even are here?" Shikamaru grunts. "Didn't you shop just a few days ago?" Oh how painfully clear that memory is to Shikamaru. The time when this whole switching hadn't mixed their minds at all, the time when he foolishly thought this would be an easy task.

"But we didn't find anything that day. So we had to come again. We need to find new dresses for the Kazekage's wedding."

"So you are invited too?" And the situation now is getting tougher every minute. All the feelings Shikamaru has mixed with this. He almost thinks it was stupid to admit his feelings towards Neji yesterday, even though it was only for himself.

"I think they invited half of Konoha and Suna. Hey, Hinata, do you like this colour? Violet would suit you well…"

But if he had not done that, he would be even more confused than now.

"It does look nice…"

Then, what about Neji? What is he feeling? Yesterday, at the graveyard, Shikamaru had let himself believe that the signs Neji gave, all the acts he did, that they mean he too feels something for Shikamaru._'But it was only 'cause the feeling at the graveyard was different… It felt like we were in a different world; in a world completely ours…'_

Hanabi grabs Shikamaru's hand and pulls him towards where Hinata is trying out a kimono, then she leaves him to stand in front of the changing room while she exchanges a few words with her.

Shikamaru falls to his own thoughts when he feels the urge to look to his left. When he sees nothing but the shop they are currently in, he uses Neji's clan's eyes. "Byakûgan!" Without any problems he turns his unnatural sight to the right direction, immediately realizing what he had tried to see. Neji stands there in front of the shop, staring right into it. Shikamaru feels like they are next to each other, staring into their own eyes, but he knows it isn't true. Neji cannot possibly see Shikamaru through a wall.

Then Neji shakes his head and Shikamaru sees his face turn into an angry twist. All the strenght and courage in Shikamaru fades away and he turns off the Byakûgan as Neji rushes off.

"Neji you pervert!" Someone slaps Shikamaru. "Were you peeping on Hinata just now?"

Shikamaru holds his cheek and stares blankly at Hanabi. He barely understood what she said. Hanabi is glaring at him with her arms crossed. He turns to look at the direction where Neji went. _'The Hokage tower is that way…'_

--- ---

Neji is angry with himself. He knows he doesn't know the real reason why, but he pretends it is because of yesterday. Because he let himself be careless around Shikamaru.

"Dammit!" He hits his fist to the door leading to the Hokage tower, breaking it. The two chûnins by the door look at him.

"You could've used a bit less power, y'know…" the one on the right says.

Neji says nothing as he charges inside the building. When he reaches the door to the Hokage's office, he gets stopped by another pair of chûnins.

"The Hokage doesn't want to see anyone right now."

"Tell her it's Nara."

The chûnins look at each other, hesitating.

"Just fucking tell her it's me", Neji hisses, scaring the two men.

"Wait a mo, I'll go tell her…" the taller one tries to calm Neji down before he disappears behind the Hokage's door.

--- ---

"Excuse me, Hokage-sama…"

"I said I don't want to see anyone right now!" Tsunade throws a scroll towards the chûnin interrupting her. He dodges easily.

"I'm sorry, but it is the Nara genius, and he looks ready to kill. I think it is urgent."

"Nara genius? You mean the pineapple head?"

"…yes." The chûnin flinches at the perfect description.

"Send him in."

The chûnin, Seito is his name, bows shortly and opens the door. Soon the 'Nara genius' steps in. Tsunade glares at him. "You haven't switched back, have you?"

Hyûga Neji shakes his head.

"Then, what do you want with me?"

"Missions." He crosses his arms and glares at Tsunade. "I tried the mission centre already but they said I have been banned."

"That's what you are." Tsunade examines Neji carefully. He seems to be filled with silent anger. "Banned until you return to your own body."

Neji glares at Tsunade. Shikamaru's dark eyes are on fire as Neji lets his anger be shown. "Why do we even have to act as each other? What good is it when we only have to lie to others?"

"It would be even worse to always introduce yourself as 'Hyûga Neji' and then explain the whole situation. It would only make everyone confused."

Tsunade and Neji glare at each other. Tsunade is ready to knock him down if he were to do anything rash. But Neji only turns around and leaves the office.

Tsunade buries her head into her hands. _'The next time I see them I'll push them from somewhere high, I swear. We can't afford to lose any jônins to insanity now.'_

--- ---

"Neji-sama, you are asked at the door."

Shikamaru turns to face the servant behind him. "Lead them here."

The young maid bows and leaves. Shikamaru stretches his legs before him and waits silently for his guests. Soon Kiba and Naruto arrive loudly to the garden, breaking the silence around Shikamaru.

"Hey, Neji, what's up!"

Shikamaru raises his hand to greet them. Kiba sits to his right side and Naruto to his left.

"Why are you here?"

"Don't sound so sour! We're here to cheer you up." Kiba puts his hand to Shikamaru's shoulder. Shikamaru can only think about how it isn't his own body's hand. Still, he doesn't push it away.

"You've just been sitting here like you're… some damsel in distress", Naruto laughs, then stops to wait for an answer.

The wind is only thing to make a sound around them.

Finally Naruto coughs to break the awkward silence. "Aren't you gonna snap at me or something?"

"Why?" All the time Shikamaru has been staring at his legs but now he turns his eyes to stare blankly at Naruto, then at Kiba.

Both are speechless. They share a questioning glance. "Neji, are you alright..?"

"No."

"Well, that explains a lot."

Shikamaru smiles to Kiba's meaningful voice. "What are you here for?"

"We were gonna ask you to come with us", Naruto starts.

"We're gonna go drinking to celebrate Gaara and Lee's last single days", Kiba finishes for him.

"You wanna come? 'Cause even if you don't, we'll drag you – "

"Who'll be coming?"

Naruto and Kiba shut up for a second to think.

"Lee and Gaara of course – "

"And Sasuke, we're planning to get him drunk all the way – "

" – Shino too, I'm gonna drug him if he's not willing – "

" – we tried to ask Shikamaru but we couldn't find him - "

At the sound of his name Shikamaru's heart makes a leap. He is both relieved to not see Neji's angry look again, but on the other hand, he can't stand being here without him.

"So, you coming?"

Shikamaru shrugs. "Might as well. I haven't got anything else to do."

--- ---

Neji screams in agony. He knows his voice is heard all around Konoha, but he doesn't care. Were someone to see him now, they would only see Nara Shikamaru hitting his fist to the rock before him until both are drowning in blood. No one would know it is Neji in reality, screaming because he doesn't know what to do, hurting himself to get rid of his thoughts of Shikamaru.

But it doesn't work.

Neji falls to his knees, his shoulders shaking from the loss of energy and blood. He wipes his face angrily to clean his eyes from all the sweat and tears there is. "Dammit Shikamaru, this is all your fault. If you just had not come to the cliff that day…" _'But maybe it was fate.'_

Neji hits his hand to the rock once more. This time he can feel Shikamaru's bone cracking against the cold rock. "I don't believe in fate anymore." He stands up and starts walking towards the village. He takes Shikamaru's hairtie off, letting the familiar feeling of hair around his face comfort him.

--- ---

Neji's mind is a real mess right now. He doesn't know at all what to do and what to think of anything. The only thing he knows is that the less he sees Shikamaru, the clearer his mind would get. So first of all on his mental list of things to do is AVOID SHIKAMARU BOTH PHYSICALLY AND MENTALLY, which he is doing a terrible job in because he is thinking only of Shikamaru and the cleaning of Shikamaru's room and on top of that he just realizes he has turned to the wrong way for some unknown reason and is now currently staring at his own body kissing with Uchiha Sasuke. If it even can be called kissing. Sucking or choking would describe it much better.

He can smell the alcohol all the way from the bar.

Shikamaru stops his 'activity' with Sasuke and laughs along with him, then, as Sasuke has turned to hang himself to the equally drunk Naruto he turns to look at Neji.

Neji tries to stop his heart from beating too fast, as he walks up to his body. Shikamaru tries to focus his eyes on him. "You… youh're me… Nehji."

Neji takes advantage of Shikamaru's weakness and grabs his hand. He pulls Shikamaru closer to him and hisses to his ear: "Don't play around with my body. It is me who people think is doing this all, so don't go around kissing just about anyone." Neji isn't even sure if Shikamaru is able to understand him in that state.

Shikamaru looks now a bit more sober than a moment ago. "So if I, if I… ish someone spechial, then…"

Neji tries to answer to Shikamaru. He really tries to say something, anything, even a little 'meep' would help him to be able to move again, but he just can't. The second Shikamaru lowered his head closer to Neji's the world around him went black and Shikamaru was all he could see.

Then Shikamaru mumbles 'you are…' and captures Neji's lips in a hot kiss that tastes of sake. Neji's mind is in bliss and he wraps his arms around Shikamaru's neck. A quick idea of this all happening just because Shikamaru is drunk enters Neji's mind, but he doesn't care. He doesn't want to let go of Shikamaru anymore because he finally feels right, he finally feels like no one can break him.

"Whoah! Whay to gho, Nhejhi! Wohooh!"

Neji lets quickly go of Shikamaru, immediately being hit in the face with the hard reality. Everything, the cheering of Naruto and the others, his dirty clothes, the bloody wound on his hand, the switch, everything. It hits Neji so hard that his head starts spinning and he has to lean to the slightly wobbling Shikamaru for support. "Let's go."

Shikamaru looks at Neji, his eyes unnaturally clear for a drunken person. "Yeah… let'sh go…" Neji tries to look at him, but it seems as if the alcohol has moved from Shikamaru to Neji, for he can't see clearly anymore.

"Bye bye, Neji-chaaaan. Let's marry other day, will we? Bye!" Uchiha Sasuke giggles and waves at them.

Shikamaru smiles stupidly at him. "Yesh… yesh, will do, bye…"

"Come on…" Neji mutters and pulls Shikamaru with him. He almost loses his balance but manages to avoid getting his head hit to the wall by hanging to Shikamaru.

So they start their long way home.

--- ---

Later that day, after he has put Shikamaru to sleep Neji stumbles to his bathroom. He gets to the sink without any major problems. He stares at himself in the mirror. _'I am drunk.'_

Neji splashes some cold water to his face. _'But how? I didn't drink anything, and the kiss… the kiss could not definitely do this.'_

A hoarse yelp leaves Neji's mouth as he stumbles backwards and falls to the floor. He stares horrifiedly at the mirror where he thought he had seen his very own face staring at him instead of Shikamaru's. His eyes as wide as plates Neji starts crawling away from the mirror, towards the door that would lead to the sleeping Shikamaru.

As Neji finally feels safe, laying there next to Shikamaru, he smiles and caresses his cheek softly. A trail of blood flows from Neji's right hand to Shikamaru's hair, sticking it to his cheek. Neji leaves his hand resting to Shikamaru's cheek, letting the blood make it's way to his lips, to his other cheek and all the way to his hair resting on the pillow.

"Your hair will be one hell of a mess tomorrow", Neji smirks and kisses Shikamaru's bloody lips. "But don't worry, I'll be here to help you with it." He closes his eyes with a smile on his lips.

* * *

**A/N:** So, what did you think? Worth the waiting or not? I really enjoyed writing those Neji parts, I just hope it shows and you can feel his feelings yourself.

**Please **do tell me if there are some reallyreallyreally freaky sentences that make no sense. I'll try to make them better, unless they are there to represent the insanity of that scene.


	13. Day 7 Hangover

**Disclaimer:** All the characters are Kishimoto Masashi's, not definitely mine

**A/N:** Quite short chapter, sorry for that.

* * *

**Day 7 - Hangover**

--- ---

As Neji's blurred mind wakes up, the first thing it registers is how he is holding his hand on someone. The next thing is when he remembers their first morning together after the switch, Neji and Shikamaru alone, when Shikamaru had been holding his hand on Neji. Now that it is Neji who is holding his hand on Shikamaru, he somehow thinks that these past few days have only been a dream, that somehow they are in the Nara house and that they have switched back and that now it is Neji in Neji's body holding Shikamaru under his arm.

But things are never like Neji would want them to be.

Neji sighs loudly and rolls to his back, staring at the roof. He holds his head, trying to ease the loud banging in his head.

"Is it that horrible to see me next to you?" Shikamaru whispers next to him.

"You do look quite hideous with all that blood", Neji answers with equally quiet voice. He knows that if his head is as hurt as it is while he drank nothing, then Shikamaru's must be at least twice as bad.

"Blood?" Shikamaru lifts his hand slowly to try to wipe away the blood from his face.

"No use; it has dried already."

Shikamaru sighs and stands up, taking his sweet time to gather his long lost balance. He gives one last glance to Neji, amking his own slow conclusions in his mind. Neji doesn't remember the small cover of dried blood on his lips.

"I'm going wash these off. You comin'?"

"Mh…" Neji pushes himself slowly up. He shudders as he accidentally puts all pressure on his wounded hand.

Shikamaru winces. "What have you done to my hand?" he asks and turns to give a half-hearted glare to Neji.

"There's just a small scratch from yesterday's training; it's nothing."

Neji walks past Shikamaru to the bathroom. Shikamaru stares after him before he realizes to open his mouth. "I meant this body, this hand." He raises his right hand to wave it slowly in front of Neji. Neji gazes at it. "And what have you done to your hand?"

"I did nothing to you, and like I said; it's just a scratch."

They wash their faces in silence, then Neji starts to brush the blood stains off of his body's hair. He holds the hairbrush on his left hand and Shikamaru stares at him through the mirror. Neji keeps his wounded hand stricly out of Shikamaru's view.

"What happened yesterday?"

Neji's hand stops for a moment. "Don't you remember anything?"

"Only that I went drinking with Naruto and Kiba."

"When I found you, you were sucking the life out of Uchiha."

"I what?"

"Apparently you were going to marry him then and there."

Shikamaru stares at Neji with his mouth hanging open. Neji can only laugh to him, though it hurts his head quite lot. And by the look on Shikamaru's face, the loud noise is too much for him too.

"Sorry", he whispers, rubbing his head. "You just looked so funny. I never realized I look so stupid when I'm surprised."

"And I thought you knew 'cause you never move your face muscles."

Neji laughs again, a quick but sharp laugh. "Sorry again. You're just too funny today."

Shikamaru frowns. "And you're still drunk."

Neji's smile fades away. He rememberes what he had been wondering last night. "Shikamaru… I drank nothing yesterday. And yet I was drunk."

Shikamaru gives a kind of a glare towards Neji through his half-lidded eyes. "Maybe you got drunk from the kiss."

Neji gasps and almost chokes on the air. "It wasn't that passionate", he says anxiously and follows Shikamaru to his bedroom. "Besides, didn't you say you couldn't remember anything?"

"I don't. I just guessed", Shikamaru mumbles. "Sorry, Neji, but I've got a huge headache right now and I'd like to sleep. So either stay here and be quiet or go to my home and we'll talk about this later, 'k?"

"Ah… ok." Neji watches as Shikamaru falls to the futon and closes his eyes.

"Feel free to change your clothes."

Neji looks down at his dirty clothes and blushes. "I'll leave in a minute, don't worry."

Shikamaru doesn't answer. He is probably asleep already.

* * *

**A/N:** I'm in a hurry, so no long A/Ns. I just hope you enjoyed this shortie. Next chapter will surely be longer, I promise. 


	14. Day 8 Fear

**Disclaimer:** I own no one in this chapter because they are all characters of Kishimoto.

**A/N:** They finally say it out loud...

Longer chapter, like I promised. Actually, the longest ch this far. Please, enjoy.

* * *

**Day 8 – Fear**

-- --

Neji just can't stop thinking about Shikamaru. Well, considering how he is in Shikamaru's room, laying on Shikamaru's futon and looking at the roof through Shikamaru's eyes it would be strange if he _didn't_ think about him.

They would be going to the graveyard today, he remembers. Again. The last time there was already enough for Neji, with all the talking about death and such… But the feeling there was enough to put up for that.

Neji sighs and stands up, walking to the open window. He climbs out of it and lays himself on the ceiling. _'No wonder Shikamaru likes this…'_ thinks Neji as he feels relaxation taking over him. But he shakes his mind to remember to focus on his 'goals for the day' as he had named them.

First of all he has to make some sense out of his own thoughts and feelings. Neji clears his mind and tries to find memories of Shikamaru before the whole switch. Had he even known his name? Well, yes, but had he known _Shikamaru_?

Neji can't seem to find any memories of him and Shikamaru talking of anything else than missions. But he does remember many moments with both him and Shikamaru alond with few others, when they hadn't shared more words than greetings. And he remembers Shikamaru's eyes staying on him for a long time.

Neji sighs. Could it be that he only imagines the looks Shikamaru had given to him? Maybe he only wants to believe Shikamaru feels the same and due to that is remembering incorrectly.

Neji stops his thoughts. _Shikamaru feels the same._ Had he just admitted something to himself? Had he just admitted he might be feeling something deeper towards Shikamaru? Neji isn't really sure, but still he answers yes, because it would be a lot easier if he knew just what he felt, instead of struggling with every move, thinking if it gives the wrong impression or not.

But what had he admitted? What feeling? Care, friendship, love?

Neji knows it isn't the exact kind of feeling he has towards Hinata and Hanabi. He wants to protect the two of them, but if someone asked him would he die for them, he would take a while to answer. But if someone asked if he would die for Shikamaru, he would immediately say yes.

Neji isn't sure if it is just friendship. He has formed bonds of friendship with Rock Lee and Ten-Ten. He does spend time with them even when not in missions, and he does feel connected when he talks with them. But it does not feel as perfect as with Shikamaru.

Is it love, then? Neji doesn't know. He has never been in love. He has had crushes. He even remembers his very first crush, a fresh genin about five years older than him. One day he left for a mission and never came back.

Neji shudders at the memory. _'Let's pretend he found his love on the mission and that's why I never saw him again…'_ Like many times before, Neji buries the memory of the boy deep within his mind as he starts thinking of something else. Neji's first crush was a boy. And as he thinks more about all the people he has had a crush on, he realizes all except one of them have been boys.

So Neji has all his life had feelings for boys. _'That doesn't make me gay'_, he grunts to himself. _'What's so bad about being gay'_, he thinks right after. _'I already admitted I love Shik - I mean - I like Shikamaru, so it shouldn't be an issue.'_

Neji just hopes his uncle would accept him no matter what. He remembers Shikamaru told him his uncle thinks Neji is gay with Shikamaru. Apparently he had not got angry because of it, otherwise Shikamaru would not have lived to tell the story.

But what if he had got cross? What if his uncle had used the family seal on Shikamaru? Neji doesn't want anyone else to suffer the same pain he has gone through. Even if he has been the curse's victim only twice, it is enough to make him fear it. And mostly, he doesn't want Shikamaru to suffer it because of him.

Neji stops once again and stares at the pure white clouds sailing on the sky.

Then… what was the drunk thing about? Was their kiss so deep it made Neji drunk? Neji doubts it. He knows there is something else to this, something that would help him to find out what is going on. He just can't remember what.

Neji concentrates and in his mind he goes through yesterday. What had happened, something odd… Then he remembers.

As he had got up from the futon, he had put all pressure on his wounded hand. Shikamaru hadn't seen it, but he had winced and asked what had Neji done to his body. At first Neji had thought that Shikamaru had wounded his hand, he just didn't remember it. But there wasn't even a scratch on his hand. Neji didn't think anything else of it, because his head was still a mess. But as he left Shikamaru, he felt his head clear as he got away from him. He had only tought it was the fresh air, but now he has the insane idea that maybe, just maybe, the switch has more effects on them than they thought. Maybe when they are closer to each other they get all confused like they are only one person.

A bird chirps somewhere far away.

Neji sighs and closes his eyes. He has to think this through, all of this. His theory so that he could tell it to Shikamaru, and his feelings, whatever they are. Only after that he would leave to Shikamaru.

-- --

Shikamaru sits in the garden once again. He admires the cherry tres that are on their full bloom right now. This is what he has been waiting for ever since he first saw the Hyûga garden.

If only there would be someone to enjoy the view with him.

Shikamaru's heart jolts as he thinks of Neji, and he turns to look at the path to the door, as if Neji would walk here right this second. He doesn't, like Shikamaru knew, but still he looks there, and every passing second his heart feels more and more like it is going to burst open from pressure.

And suddenly he sees himself walking along the pathway to the garden.

The closer Neji gets, the more Shikamaru feels like his heart swells so much it smashes his lugns aside, and as Neji stops next to him, his heart finally explodes and the pieces fly off to hit other body parts and continue their beating there.

"Hi", Shikamaru mumbles.

"Hi", Neji says. "Sorry I didn't come earlier."

"It's okay."

Neji doesn't ask does Shikamaru want to leave now. He just sits next to him on the bench and waits for him to gather the pieces of his heart to their right place again.

-- --

Neji looks at Shikamaru next to him. They walk along the path between the graves, Shikamaru leading the way to his ex-sensei's grave.

The grave stands almost alone in the far part of the graveyard. Shikamaru puts his hand to the stone. Neji thinks he can teel the coldness of the stone on his own hand, but he might be just hallucinating.

They just stand there for a long time.

"Why are you silent?"

Neji startles at the sudden question. "I'm thinking."

"Thinking what?"

"Everything that has happened after the last time we were here."

"What has happened?"

"Everything." Neji looks at Shikamaru. "I have realized something."

"Realized what?"

"Don't ask. I think you know it already; you can feel my heartbeat, I know it."

Shikamaru looks at Neji, his big white eyes unreadable.

Without any warning Neji grabs Shikamaru to his embrace and raises his right hand, with the big, still not even scarred wound on it, and hits it to the grave's edge. When his bare bone has contact with the stone, it leaves a loud screech. Neji barely hears it under Shikamaru's shriek.

"What the hell?!" Shikamaru yanks his hand away from Neji's tight embrace. He looks at it, seeing no mark of any wound whatsoever.

"I just tested my theory…" Neji mumbles and wraps his bleeding hand with bandages he had in his pocket just for this. "And this proves it right." Then he suddenly jumps out of Shikamarus's view.

"Does it still hurt?" Shikamaru hears his voice.

"No", he answers. It really doesn't, though his hand had felt like it was burning just a moment ago. Then Neji comes to Shikamaru's view again. As he walks closer the pain comes back gradually.

"Now it's coming back", he tells to Neji who is now standing before him. "What is your theory about? That if you hurt yourself, it hurts me too?"

"Yes. And the closer we are, the stronger the effect is."

Shikamaru is silent for a moment, just looking at Neji. "Does it work with pain only?" Shikamaru slides down to sit on the ground. Neji does so too.

"I've only tested it with pain, but apparently it works with alcohol too."

"That's what you meant yeasterday", Shikamaru says. "When you said you were drunk though you drank nothing", he explains as he meets Neji's wondering look.

"Yeah, that's it…" His voice dies down as he thinks of something else. "Do you think this… _this_ will get even worse?"

"Like that we can hear each other's thoughts?"

Neji stares at Shikamaru, horrified by his words. "Yes, that is exactly what I meant."

"Maybe it'll get even worse, and we can't only hear each other's thoughts and feel pain, but we'll see the same things. The we can't remmeber who we are and where we are and we have to be separated forever in order to continue living, or else we'd go insane because we wouldn't know what we really see and think. Then we'd have to forget all about our real selves and just live like we do now; me as you and you as me. After we would've gotten used to it, we would only think of our early life as a dream and forget all about ourselves." Shikamaru stops and Neji stares at him, his dark eyes round and big.

"You always start talking about eerie things when we come here."

Shikamaru just smiles lightly as if he did not hear Neji's comment. "I hope it won't go that far. I don't want to be you."

"Why?" Neji asks faintly.

"I don't want to be you; I want to be _with_ you. " Shikamaru turns his eyes towards Neji. "I love you."

Neji knows he can't just leave this hanging anymore. They are silent for a moment.

"You're right", Shikamaru finally says and puts his hand to his heart. "I can feel you heartbeat next to mine."

Neji hasn't still found any words to say to him.

Shikamaru turns his hed and leans his cheek to the stone. Now Neji is sure he feels the coldness on his own cheek. He gets closer to Shikamaru and takes him to his hold. Shikamaru does not resist.

"Why are you so silent?"

"I'm thinking." Neji strokes Shikamaru's hair gently. His own hair.

"Thinking what?"

"To find a way to tell you I'm in love with you."

Neji feels Shikamaru's heart beat a bit quicker.

"I think you could just say it out loud."

Neji looks at Shikamaru, his own body. He has closed his eyes, Neji notices gratefully. He does not want to see the Byakûgan now. "But what if I am not? What if I only want my own body back and am taking it as love."

"You won't know unless you give it a chance."

Neji doesn't say a word. He doesn't say out loud that he _knows_ he is in love with Shikamaru. He just holds him for a while. His own body.

-- --

The sun has almost set as Neji walks with Shikamaru back to the Hyûga mansion. After the scene at the graveyard they have shared only few words, but the silence around them is not awkward but comfortable.

Neji opens the gate to the yard and Shikamaru goes through it. "Ladies first", he says and Neji doesn't know should he laugh or not. He decides to show his tongue to Shikamaru's back.

They walk to the garden, holding hands without even noticing it, because it feels so natural. They stop in the middle of the cherry trees, looking at the flowers shining lightly in the light of the setting sun. Wind blows, moving few strands of Neji's body's long hair to his face. Neji wipes them away and leaves his hand to rest on Shikamarus's shoulder. Shikamaru moves his hand to Neji's neck, slowly, testing his reaction. Neji doesn't resist so he lets his hand stay there, his fingers caressing the sensitive place on his neck which he knows well.

"You're too beautiful to be real."

Shikamaru lifts his gaze to Neji. "You or me?"

Neji turns his head away. "This has to end. I don't know who I am anymore." Shikamaru is silent for a long time, and if he couldn't hear his heart Neji would've thought he died. He keeps on speaking. "I'm afraid of seeing myself now. I once thought I saw you on the mirror instead of me – I mean, my face instead of yours, and I got scared." Neji takes a step closer to Shikamaru. "You seem pretty calm. How?"

"You confuse me so badly I forget to think."

Neji doesn't know how to react. Shikamaru has not said it out loud, but Neji knows what he means with all the hints and gestures, and he doesn't know what to do. He really wants to say it to Shikamaru, that he has fallen for him, but he is afraid that he might give too much of himself and then one of them would realize their love was just longing for their own body. "Why do you even like me? I'm just an arrogant bastard."

"You were an arrogant bastard long time ago", Shikamaru says and his hand rubs Neji's tense neck muscles. "But you have changed."

"But why? You could love Chôji, he is such a nice person, and you must know him better than me, you have been together so much."

"I do not fall for every man I know."

Neji lets his hand slide down to Shikamaru's waist. He feels the soft touch on himself too though there is no one touhing him. It feels both creepy and comforting.

"You have changed from the narcissistic bastard to what you are now." Shikamaru looks straight at Neji. "You're something I can never reach; you are smart, handsome, you succeed in everything you do. You are what I call perfect."

"That's just the illusion of me", Neji says and pulls Shikamaru closer to him. "I want everyone to believe I am perfect, but I am not. One should see my true self before… before anything."

"If I haven't seen the true Neji these past days, then what have I seen?"

Neji laughs shortly. "Have you planned this long before I even knew I would see you today? Because I feel like you are controlling the course of this conversation."

"And are you avoiding my questions? Do you wanna get rid of me? If you do, then just say it and I'll leave you alone."

Neji's heart beats rapidily. "I already said that you know how I feel. You can feel my heart beating itself to death whenever you are near." Neji hugs Shikamaru and Shikamaru hugs him back. Or maybe it is just the strange feeling of his own hands. "But apparently I should say it." He kisses Shikamaru quickly, or at least that's what he tried to do, but somehow he just can't seem to let go of him. "I have fallen for you. I don't know when, and I don't know how it happened, because I have always thought of myself unable to fall for someone this quickly. But I am just scared..." Neji whispers against Shikamaru's parted lips. "I am just scared that I can't be myself with you if I am always thinking that we are just longing after our own bodies." Neji kisses Shikamaru again, this time quickly. "I'll leave now."

Shikamaru slides his hand slowly away from Neji's neck. His fingers touch offhandly the earring on his right ear and Neji wonders if the gesture has a deeper meaning to it.

"You better move already", Shikamaru says.

Neji realizes he hasn't moved an inch since he last spoke. "Yeah, I better do." He pulls his hands from Shikamaru's waist. On the spur of the moment he pinches Shikamaru's arse, despite he knows he would feel it on his own.

Shikamaru winces and automatically moves away from the touch, only finding himself once again in Neji's arms. "Pervert", he mumbles but can't help a smile forming on his lips.

"It's only your fault by being so attractive", Neji says and gives a peck to Shikamaru's cheek before finally backing few steps away from him. "And I mean _you_, not my body." He stops again and just stands before Shikamaru.

"Stop messing around and leave already", Shikamaru says, still smiling. "Or are you gonna spend the night with me?"

"I'd love to, but I should learn to sleep alone already." Neji grins and waves his hand. "Good night."

"G'night."

Neji turns around and walks out of the garden. He knows Shikamaru is also walking away from him, because he feels their eerie connection getting quickly weaker. And he is happy, because the taste of Shikamaru is still on his lips, and the memory of him smiling fresh on his mind. He doesn't even care about how Shikamaru's smiling face is actually Neji's, because right now he doesn't think that looks matter that much.

* * *

**A/N:** So, what do you think? I had to change some parts many times before I was satisfied, and I read the previous chs twice just to make this a smooth continuation to them. I hope I managed, because I think this is quite important chapter.

**This story is nearing its end.** Only two or three chapters left, and I still have many things left for Neji and Shikamaru to go through. Hopefully you'll be delighted throughout the whole story.


	15. Day 9 Rain after sunset

**Disclaimer:** The characters in this chapter are all Kishimoto Masashi's, definitely not mine…

**A/N:** The second longest ch in this fic. I'm actually quite pleased with the ending, it came out much better than I think the start did.

Please read and enjoy.

* * *

**Day 9 – Rain after sunset**

-- --

Chôji knocks on Shikamaru's room's door. He hears the person in the room say 'come in' so he opens the door and does as told.

"Oh, Chôji-san, hello", Neji greets him surprisedly. He stands in front of the window, pulling down the hem of his fishnet shirt.

"Hi", Chôji says and sits to Shikamaru's futon. "How's it going? Has anyone found out?"

"No, no one. I have just been sitting here most of the time, so..." Neji grabs a vest from the floor and puts it on. He fishes a hairtie out of his pocket and looks at Chôji. "Could you, um… put my hairtie on?"

"Sure", Chôji answers and beckons Neji to sit in front of him to the futon. He grabs the strands of his hair to his hand and quickly pulls them into a neat ponytail.

"Thanks." Neji stretches and lays himself on the futon. "Chôji?"

"Yes?"

"Do you like Shikamaru?"

Chôji quirks his eyebrows. "As a friend, yes."

"But… nothing else?"

"He loves you, has always loved, if that's what you're wondering."

Neji blushes brightly. "He has?"

Chôji smiles at this rare though false sight. "He has only loved one person in his life and that's you."

"That sounds so eternal… Has loved only me…" Neji's blush has calmed down and he looks at Chôji. "Yesterday I told him I love him."

"You did?" Chôji asks surprisedly.

"I did, though I was scared to admit it to him, because it would make a difference to everything. I'm scared that it isn't love but something else. I'd want it to be perfect, smooth right from the start with no flaws and doubts."

"That doesn't sound very… possible."

"I know."

"Well, I gotta leave now. I just came to check on you." Chôji stands up and heads towards the door.

Neji sits up and looks at him. "Where are you going?"

"I've got a class to substitute."

"Can I come with you?"

"Sure. I guess."

-- --

Today Shikamaru wakes up with a smile on his face and joy in his heart. He remembers yesterday clearly – why wouldn't he? - and that is why he is now smiling all the time while he dresses and leaves to have breakfast.

"Morning, nii-san", Hinata greets him.

"Morning", Shikamaru says to her and sits around the table to join Hinata, Hanabi and Neji's uncle. A servant rushes to pour him a cup of tea. No more does Shikamaru find this strange though at first he had to always hide his surprise as a servant came to fulfill his wish.

"You look really happy, Neji. What has happened?" Hanabi asks and gives him an interested look over the table.

"I just _am_ happy, that's all."

Hana quirks her eyebrows. "You look like you're in love."

A rapid coughing fills the dining room as both Shikamaru and Hiashi had almost suffocated to their teas after Hanabi's statement.

"What happened? You finally told Shikamaru how you feel, right?"

Shikamaru tries to steady his breathing as he gives a glare to the curious Hanabi. "My lovelife is none of your business."

"But nii-san! I want to know!"

"Go buy gayporn if you're so interested in me and him."

Hiashi is once again choking to his tea, and his coughing is the only sound in the room. Hinata blushes and Hanabi only stares at Shikamaru.

Shikamaru tries to look normal though he swears himself and his loud mouth to the deepest hole on Earth. "Good day to you all", he mutters a bit uncomfortably and leaves the table as quickly as possible without running.

-- --

As Chôji and Neji step into the classroom, all kids suddenly jump to their own places and shut up for a second. But as soon as they notice the interrupter is not their regular teacher, they start murmuring amongst themselves.

"Shut up, please", Chôji hits his fist to the table infront of the class, smiling all the while. To Neji he looks quite creepy.

The effect is instant. All kids shut their mouths and turn all of their attention towards Chôji. "Hello you all. I'm Akimichi Chôji, your substitute today as your teacher is… I don't even know where he is. Anyways, this is Nara Shikamaru, my teammate who's got nothing else to do so he came with me to laze around here."

Neji glares at Chôji at this and turns his back to him in protest. He can hear few giggles from the kids.

"I think we first gotta check if everyone's here…"

As Chôji starts the lesson, Neji turns to the window and sits on the windowstill. He looks at the clouds and thinks of yesterday. It feels like a strong grip around his heart has been lifted. Neji must admit it was a relief to tell his feelings to Shikamaru, though he still is afraid that his love is nothing more than longing to his own body.

'_I'll just have to wait and see…'_ Neji closes his eyes and listens to the calming voices of Chôji and his temporary students. _'…and enjoy this while I can.'_

-- --

Shikamaru walks around Konoha with no destination. Actually, he does have a destination, and that is weherever Neji is. But since he does not know where he is – he had already checked his home – Shikamaru had decided to try if he could find Neji with the help of the connection they are sharing. So he had cleared his mind and just let himself wander around and somehow he had ended up at the yard of the ninja academy.

Shikamaru encircles the building to find Neji's presence. He has gone half of the way when he feels a strange feeling next to his heart, but as quickly as it had come it goes away. Shikamaru stops and backs two steps. There it is again, the small feeling next to his heart. Neji's heart.

Shikamaru backs two steps again and hides behind a bush. He doesn't want Neji to notice him yet, so he tries to calm his heart.

Neji is sitting on a windowstill, his eyes closed and his head turned towards the sky. He clearly hasn't noticed Shikamaru yet.

Shikamaru grins as he remembers what Neji had done to him yesterday. Now would be the perfect time to have his revenge…

-- --

Neji screams in sudden pain and jumps few feet to the air, knocking his head to the window in the progress. He almost falls out of the window but manages to keep his legs inside, so instead of falling to the ground he just knocks his head to the outside wall and stays hanging there. As his vision clears he sees Shikamaru stand up from a bush on the yard and head towards him while rubbing his head in pain.

"The hell you pinched my arse for?" Neji hisses as soon as Shikamaru is close enough so no one inside would hear him

"Revenge", Shikamaru smiles down to him. "Though I don't know if it really was worth it 'cause you just had to bang your head twice, thanks a lot…"

"You were hiding in that bush?"

"Yup." Shikamaru helps Neji inside the building again.

"And the… bond was okay there?"

Shikamaru smiles at the word Neji chose. "Yeah. It's increased since yesterday." He leans his upper body against Neji's legs as he peeks inside the classroom. "Hello."

Chôji smiles at him. "Hi."

The kids stare at Shikamaru and Neji. "Who's that girl?" one loud mouthed boy asks, pointing at Shikamaru.

Shikamaru only quirks his eyebrows lazily but Neji glares at the boy. "He's man, not a girl." He grabs Shikamaru by his collar and pulls him inside the room. "See, a man." Shikamaru falls slowly to the floor as Neji lets go of him, his legs still sticking out of the window.

"She's got a dress", the boy points out. "She's a girl."

"That's not a dress, it's a traditional Hyûga clan's cloth." Neji fumes with anger.

"She's got long hair. Only girls have long hair", the boy continues.

Shikamaru has finally fallen completely into the room and is now standing up. "You know boy…" he starts and smooths down his clothes. "Most ninjas have long hair."

"They're all girls then."

"The first and second Hokage had long hair. The fourth's was quite long too. We three all have long hair. And you know why?"

"…"

"Because we are good. If you have long hair, that means you are good." Shikamaru smiles cockily. "And it looks good on top of all. Right, ladies?" He swishes his hair so it hits the sunlight coming from the window and shines.

All the girls blush.

"Let's go, Shikamaru", Shikamaru says and jumps out of the window.

"Bye, Chôji", Neji says and follows him.

"See ya tomorrow."

After the two have gone out of sight, a girl from the front row says: "I'm never gonna cut my hair again."

-- --

"What was all that hair thing about?"

Shikamaru shrugs. "I had to save our reputations."

"Our reputations?"

"If you had kept on going, people would've started thinking I'm a lunatic who's crazy about you. And I got to make them clear you're a man."

Neji blushes. "I sounded like a lunatic?"

"You would've if I hadn't come to the rescue."

Neji laughs softly. "You're my hero."

"Doesn't a hero always get some kind of a… reward?" Shikamaru nibbles Neji's ear softly at a sensitive place.

Neji gasps. "Maybe later", he says quietly, smirking. "I wouldn't want to traumatize those old ladies…" he beckons towards a group of elder women.

They walk silently along the streets.

"Wanna grab something to eat?" Shikamaru suddenly asks and points to a nearby restaurant. "I didn't eat any breakfast today…"

"And why is that?" Neji asks as they walk inside. "You feel kinda guilty."

"I…" Shikamaru shuts up as a waitress comes to get their orders.

"What is it? Tell me. I'm not gonna kill you because of it."

"I truly hope so…" he mutters under his breath. "Well, it's nothing, really. I just told Hanabi to go buy gayporn if she's so interested in me and you." Shikamaru tries to sound casual, but he it doesn't help as he knows how Neji will react.

"That's nothing?" Neji shrieks. "You say that's nothing?"

"You're overreacting, just like your family…" Shikamaru mutters. The rest of the restaurant is looking at them, but soon they turn to their own things again.

"I'm not overreacting", Neji says over the screeching of his teeth, and somehow Shikamaru is reminded of the first time when they woke up after the switch. "How could you say such thing? They're going to think I am some… sexcrazed maniac when I'm with you."

"I'd want to see that happen…"

"Shut up", Neji slaps Shikamaru's arm faintly but Shikamaru grabs his hand to his hold. "You don't know Hanabi. She's weird sometimes. And she has already got a gayporn collection of her own, I saw it once…" Neji blushes and his voice trails off.

The waitress comes back with their dishes.

"Save my reputation, yeah right", Neji mutters as they start to eat. "You have already gotten my family to believe I'm a sexcrazed gay."

Shikamaru chuckles. "And which one isn't true? Are you frigid gay or just so addicted you just wanna have sex with yourself?"

"Pervert!" Neji hisses and tries to slap Shikamaru with his only free hand left. Shikamaru grabs it to his hold and smirks.

"Caught", he says and places a kiss on his hand.

"Hi guys!"

Neji and Shikamaru almost choke on the air as they hear the familiar voice. Ino steps in front of them, Sakura following her with a less maniac smile on her lips.

"Whatcha doing here?" Neji asks, automatically switching to the slightly rougher speaking style of Shikamaru.

"Oh nothing, we just happened to pass by and saw you so we came to say hi", Ino smiles and sits down. "Ooh, food!" She grabs Neji's plate and chopsticks and starts to eat.

"Hey!" Neji protests.

"Eat his", Ino says and points at Shikamaru. "You wanna some, Sakura?"

"No thanks", Sakura shakes her head. "Say guys, have you seen Sasuke?"

"Last time three days ago", Shikamaru says as he feeds Neji. "Why?"

"We're just looking for him", Sakura stutters and looks at the two men with a faint blush on her cheeks. "We asked Sai to draw his portrait for us but we couldn't find him anywhere."

"Naruto's missing too", Ino points out as she finishes Neji's dish.

"Have you considered they might want to have some time alone?" Shikamaru suggests.

"You telling me they're together? Oh god why are all the good guys either taken or gay." Ino sighs and stands up. "Well, see ya around."

So the two girls leave the restaurant.

"She's a bit strange", Neji says.

"You get used to it after a while."

-- --

The view from the Hokage monument is beautiful. The setting sun is shining, making all the houses glitter and bathe in its warm orange and red light.

"It is beautiful", Neji says quietly, "but still, it looks like everything's going to disappear soon."

"Yeah, I know what you mean…" Shikamaru sits down to the rock and turns his face towards the rays of the setting sun. He has always loved the sunset. It is so warm, calm and still full of life. And somehow it reminds him of Neji.

"The sun shines on you so that I can't see your face."

"Pretend it's my very own face, then."

"Is that your ultimate solution to this?"

"For now, yes. It'd be too troublesome to think up another."

Neji sits next to Shikamaru. "I already thought you had given up on that word."

"It's a troublesome habit. Would be too troublesome to get rid of it."

Neji lies down to the rock and Shikamaru lets his head rest on his shoulder. Neji puts his hand around him.

"What were you doing on the cliff that day?" he suddenly asks.

"I wanted to see you."

"Why?"

"I just wanted to watch you train."

"Why?"

"'Cause I love you."

Neji stops his questioning. Shikamaru's answer was simple and true, and Neji knows it. But he is still shocked. Somehow, he hadn't thought…he hadn't thought anything! To hear that Shikamaru had come to the cliff to watch him… He almost thinks this is all part of Shikamaru's big plan to get Neji to fall for him.

And as he thinks more about it, he gets more and more sure that it is all just a plan.

Neji gazes in Shikamaru's eyes and at the dark shawods of the clouds ruining the pure whiteness of them. Suddenly he is jealous of Shikamaru and the fact that he is in his body, looking at the sky through his clan's eyes that he should have never had. He is so jealous that he feels like he just has to rip Shikamaru to half and dive into him, just to get inside his own body.

"What are you thinking?" Shikamaru asks. His voice sounds a bit scared and painful, but as Neji is not sure of it he lets it pass like nothing.

He doesn't answer to him.

"You fill my heart with a feeling I can't figure out."

"Isn't it my heart you are talking about?" Now Neji feels Shikamaru's heart pass a beat and he regrets what he said. But he can't bring himself to say any comforting words. "Have you planned all of this?"

Shikamaru looks at Neji. He feels a small sparkle of anger and frustration in his heart and he doesn't know if it's his or Neji's. "Planned what?"

"This."

Neji voice is monotonical, but Shikamaru can feel what he feels, and the small word tells everything important to him. And now he knows the feeling is Neji's, because he himself is only scared.

"No. I wouldn't do such."

"Wouldn't you? It would be just perfect for you: to get much time alone with me while I'm so confused I don't know what I feel."

"I wouldn't."

"What about your friends? Chôji knows of your love towards me, and Ino is obsessed about your lovelife. And her clan's jutsu is all about mind switching."

"It doesn't work like this does."

The first drop of rain lands on Neji's nose. He wipes it away, but soon a couple more wet his cheeks. He pushes Shikamaru off of his lap and stands up. Shikamaru only lays on the rock.

"I'll leave now. We will see tomorrow at the wedding." Neji tries to swallow down the mix of anger and fear that is almost suffocating him.

"Bye then", Shikamaru says quietly. A big raindrop lands on the corner of his eye and falls down his cheek, imitating a tear.

Neji feels like he can't breathe and once again he is not sure who he is right now. He turns around and leaves quickly.

Shikamaru closes his eyes and lets the rain wet him completely. Later he could drown himself in hot bath and pretend everything would be fine tomorrow.

* * *

**A/N:** Phew! My ringfingers actually hurt right now 'cause I wrote so much.

So, comments are loved. What did you think of the change of emotions in this chapter? Did they make you dizzy? Hopefully not. Also, their connection has increased. Interesting. Will it increase even more, or will something worse happen tomorrow at the wedding?

**Only 1 or 2 chapters until the end of this fic. How sad.**


	16. Day 10 The cure

**Disclaimer:** All the characters in this chapter are the property of Kishimoto Masashi.

**A/N:** The very last chapter of this fic. I hope you like it, because I do. Please read and enjoy, more babbling at the end.

* * *

**Day 10 – The cure**

-- --

Neji cries.

At least, that's what everyone else would say he is doing right now.

Neji wouldn't admit such. He would only say that tears are falling down from his eyes because the sunlight is hurting them. But no, he is not crying because of yesterday. Because he blaimed Shikamaru for something he now knows Shikamaru would never do. He is not crying because of that. It's just that the wind is so dry and makes his eyes water.

"Hey, Shikamaru-kun! I hope you're ready!"

Neji jumps into a sitting position and quickly wipes his eyes before turning to look through the window.

Ino and Chôji stand near the door and look towards Neji.

"Whatcha doing there? We gotta go now." Ino clasps her hands to get Neji moving. "Have you even dressed yet?"

"No", Neji says monotonically, trying to keep his flowing emotions out of his voice.

"I'll help him choose clothes", Chôji says. "You wait downstairs."

"Ok, but hurry. I don't wanna miss anything", Ino says and leaves the two of them alone.

"What happened with you and Shikamaru yesterday?" Chôji asks as he goes through Shikamaru's wardrobe.

"I don't know. I just… I just somehow started thinking he had planned this whole switch just to get me."

"He wouldn't do such."

"I know. But yesterday I got angry and just left him there all confused."

"You better talk to him today. Put these on." Chôji hands Neji black pants, white shirt and a vest that is black from the back and dark green from the front.

"I don't know what to say to him", Neji mumbles as he puts the clothes on.

"'Sorry' would be a good start", Chôji suggests. "Now let's go or Ino'll come and drag us there."

-- --

The wedding is held at the middle of the village, in a large storehouse turned into a festival hall. Neji walks at the garden surrounding it with Ino and Chôji. The place is so crowded that he barely knows where he is going.

"Guys, this way", Ino says and turns to her right. Chôji and Neji follow quietly.

Neji looks around him as they make their way to the hall. He doesn't see or even feel Shikamaru anywhere.

'Maybe he won't even come…'

Then, just as they step into the hall, Neji's feels rapid beating next to his heart. It is Shikamaru's scared heart, so that means Shikamaru has seen him. Neji lifts his head and looks to his left. He sees nothing from the crowd of people, so he tries to squeeze his way towards the feeling. "Sorry, sorry…" he mumbles to all the people he accidentally pushes. Finally the crowd of people ends and he can walk freely again.

"Shikamaru, I'm glad you made it!"

Neji turns to the familiar voice and sees Lee coming towards him. Shikamaru is standing slightly behind him, his eyes half closed, looking away.

"Is your friend Chôji here too?" Lee asks and hugs Neji quickly.

"Ye-yes…" Neji stutters and tries to calm his beating heart. Or is it Shikamaru's? He doesn't know, and he doesn't care, because right now their hearts are one. "He's here somewhere…"

"I'll go find him, then." And so Lee is gone, leaving the two of them alone in silence.

Neji stares at his very own face. "Hi", he says quietly, trying to catch Shikamaru's gaze.

"Hi", Shikamaru answers. His arms are crossed and he examines Neji quietly with his eyes. He looks calm, but Neji can feel how nervous he is.

"I'm sorry", Neji says quickly.

Shikamaru blinks. "What?"

Neji steps closer to Shikamaru, so close that he feels dizzy of all the feelings flowing inbetween them. "Of yesterday. I'm sorry I doubted you. I know you wouldn't do such."

Shikamaru only looks at him, but Neji knows exactly what he feels. He almost knows what he thinks.

And as Neji knows Shikamaru can't find anything to say, he leans closer to him and kisses him softly and lovingly.

"Sorry", he says again.

Shikamaru shakes his head and smiles. "That's okay…"

They leave together for the wedding ceremony.

-- --

Shikamaru and Neji cheer along everyone else as Lee and Gaara stand on the stage, ready to throw Lee's bracelet made of flowers to the audience. They hold it together, and simultaneously throw it to the audience behind them.

Neji can't help a quiet laugh as almost every female and a few males in the audience leap for the bracelet. But every one of them misses, and the bracelet keeps on going, until it lands on the hand of the surprised Chôji who is standing right next to Neji.

People applause at Chôji, even Ino though she looks slightly sour. But soon she smiles again and throws herself at Chôji. "Oh Chôji, can I take care of your wedding's flowers too?"

"Sure, but there's no rush…"

"Oh? Haven't you found anyone yet?"

Neji and Shikamaru leave the blushing Chôji under Ino's examination. They sit next to each other on a windowsill and watch as people go and come in front of them. Shikamaru turns to look out of the window, the bright sun blinding him for a moment.

Neji blinks. "Did the sun just blind you?"

"Yes", Shikamaru says and turns to Neji. "Did you feel it too?"

"Yes. At least, something blinded me for a few seconds."

Shikamaru looks at Neji. "The connection must be increasing rapidly now."

"But why? Earlier it has increased only a bit a day, but now it feels like I can hear how it is spreading all the time."

"Maybe it's because we have been like this for quite a long time…"

"Ten days only, though it feels twice as long. Could it really be that?"

Shikamaru shrugs. "Or maybe that's just the way it is. It started all of a sudden, so it could do anything."

Neji stares silently at the floor. "Does that mean that soon I will see what you see?"

"Propably. If it hasn't happened already."

Neji looks at Shikamaru. Shikamaru only looks outside at the clear blue sky. Their hearts beat simultaneously with a quick pace. They are both scared.

Neji blinks quickly as he feels like someone has put a thin layer of blue paint to his eyes. He rubs his eyes, but it doesn't go away. Not until Shikamaru turns inside again.

"What can we do if we'll never find the cure?" Neji asks quietly.

"We could make a great pair like this… One of us spying, the other taking notes of everything…" Shikamaru puts his arm around Neji. "But don't think about such. Try to live this moment and not worry about the future."

"How can I not worry about it?" Neji asks with uneasy voice. "How can I not think about it when it's building around us like a barrier?"

"If I'm always besides you, we'll always see the same things", Shikamaru says and rubs Neji's neck although the way he feels it too creeps him. He leans down to kiss Neji.

"Good news guys, I found the cure", comes Tsunade's voice suddenly, and they just have time to stop their kiss before they feel someone pushing them powerfully off the windowsill.

Then, just like on the first day of the switch, they fall, surprised yelps coming out of their mouths.

-- --

"Ough…"

Shikamaru lifts his hand to his forehead. Something feels strange. His skin feels different than before.

Then Shikamaru remembers how he had thought these exaclty same thoughts when he had fallen from the cliff with Neji. And as his mind clears and he remembers what happened, he dares to think that maybe his skin feels different because it is his, his very own, not Neji's.

Shikamaru opens his eyes and turns to look at his right. He sees Neji. Not just Neji's mind in the wrong body, but he sees Neji in Neji's body, opening his big, white eyes slowly.

Neji stares at him with disbelief in his eyes. "Shikamaru..?"

"We're cured", Shikamaru simply says. His voice shakes, because he is scared. He is scared now that he sees Neji's body infront of him instead of his very own. "We're cured…"

Neji only stares, his eyes big and wide, almost like they are soon going to fall off of his head. He breathes quickly and sharply and stumbles away from Shikamaru. Then he closes his eyes and shakes his head. "It's just Shikamaru…"

"Neji! Shikamaru! Are you alright?" Ten-Ten comes running to them, a few others behind her. "Did you hurt yourself? It was quite long fall."

Neji stares blankly at Ten-Ten. "What..?"

Ino comes from behind Ten-Ten and goes to Shikamaru. "You okay, Shikamaru? You look kinda dizzy."

"Yeah, I'm fine", Shikamaru says and stands up, wobbling a bit, rather from the realization that he is now in his own body than from the fall. Or maybe both. He really doesn't feel like thinking such useless things right now.

"Shikamaru?" Neji whispers from the ground where he is still sitting. "Don't leave now."

"Never", Shikamaru says and helps him up.

A silence surrounds them and the small audience around them. Neji and Shikamaru only stare deep into each other's eyes. And though they hold each other tightly, they feel lost and alone because they can't feel another heart besides their own.

Were they still in each other's bodies, Neji would know what to do because he would feel exactly what Shikamaru feels. But he doesn't know anything now, so he lets go of Shikamaru's hands.

But he doesn't leave him.

-- --

The setting sun shines on Neji and Shikamaru as they walk together back to their homes. Their very own homes. They stop at the very same time as they come to the place where they should choose different paths.

"Remind me which way to go, or else I'll go to your home", Neji says.

"I'm more than willing to take you with me."

"Shikamaru. We're cured now. This is our goodbye." Neji gives a sideways glance to Shikamaru.

"You saying we won't meet ever again?"

"We will, but not as often as we used to. Not like we did when I was you…"

"So you want to throw this all away; just forget all these days we shared together, just you and me?" Shikamaru doesn't let Neji's white eyes out of his intensive gaze.

Neji doesn't say anything. He does know what he would want to say, but he is not brave enough to say it. Not again, not now when they are separated from their connection that couldn't even be properly described.

"Do you want to forget all the feelings we had?"

"Don't try to make me feel guilty, Shikamaru", Neji says, and his voice is a bit sharp. "The feelings we had were just illusions because we wanted to feel our own bodies' warmth."

"But you believed in those illusions."

Silence surrounds them as they stand there, holding hands and staring into each other's eyes.

"It's goodbye now", Neji finally says.

"You're not letting go of me."

"Do you want me to?"

"No. Do you want to?"

"I don't know", Neji says and turns his eyes away from Shikamaru's. "I relly don't know. It must be just the aftereffects of the switch. It has to be."

"It doesn't have to be anything. You don't have to analyze everything. Just listen to what you want to do."

Neji gazes at Shikamaru. "But what if it really is just the aftereffects? What if I feel nothing towards you after a few days?"

"I don't care. Even if it's that case, I'll make you fall for me so hard you never want to leave me."

"What if you leave me?" Neji asks silently.

"I said 'never', and that's what I meant."

Neji smiles. "Yeah, you're too lazy."

Then Shikamaru kisses him. And how good it feels, how right to have him there, nothing inbetween them. They have kissed before during these ten days, but now that it is Shikamaru both body and mind, it is perfection.

"I love you so I won't leave you", Shikamaru says, leaning closer to Neji.

"It's time for goodbye now."

"For now."

"For now", Neji admits.

Neji steps a step back and glides his fingers slowly away from Shikamaru's hand. They gaze deep into each other's eyes.

"Let's meet tomorrow", Shikamaru says.

Neji is silent. "If you promise me that this will last. Promise me we won't just get back to our normal life like nothing happened. Promise me that this feeling will last."

"It will last", Shikamaru says and lifts his hand to Neji's houlder. "It'll last until next week, next month, year. It will last for years and years, until we're so scarred from battles that no one recognizes our faces but we, and then we'll hold hands just like now and remember all this with a warm feeling. And when we die, whether it's in a battle or of a disease or when our bodies just can't keep up with life, we'll close our eyes and remember this day and all this and thank ourselves for making the right choice."

Neji looks at Shikamaru, his lips parted. Then he smiles lightly and embraces Shikamaru.

And finally Neji lets his fingers slide off from the touch of Shikamaru's. He gives one last glance to him and turns around, beginning his way home.

Shikamaru looks after Neji's disappearing back for a long time, for so long that he can't see him anymore. With the happiest smile of his whole life on his face he turns to face his road home. Full of bustling joy he let's his face bathe on the lovely rose shades of the setting sun.

He knows he'll see Neji tomorrow.

--END--

* * *

**A/N:** Gosh, I just love the ending. What did you think? Was the ending really touching? Are you gonna miss this fic? I think I will.

The very last part of this fic was inspired by the balcony scene of 'Romeo and Juliet' where they say 'goodbye' all over and over again, but Romeo just won't leave.

Well, this is the end now. Please review if you have anything to say about this. And please save me if you will - www. lost. eu/18603


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